The Ukrainian youth team (players born in 2006 or later) finished third in the elite round of Euro-2023 (U-17) qualification, which did not allow the blue and yellow to advance to the final tournament. The official website of the UAF asked head coach Yuriy Moroz to summarize his team's performance on Cyprus.

"Mr. Moroz, how disappointed are you with your players' failure to qualify for the Euro finals?"

"Everyone is disappointed. After the first match against Cyprus, the mood was good, but the second game against Ireland knocked us down. We played very poorly in defense."

"Was the match against Ireland decisive?"

"Mistakes in our defense at the 4th and 12th minute were crucial. It's not what I expected from my players, they scored their own goals. We regrouped, started playing with two forwards, but ended up conceding a counterattack, and that was it. However, even after this match, we still had a chance to advance from the group..."

Photo by the UAF press service

"In matches against Ireland and Italy, blue and yellow failed to score. Were our opponents too strong, or did we lack skill?"

"These are tough opponents. I said before the tournament that every country has learned how to play football. In attack, the Irish and Italians were stronger, while in defense, we made simple mistakes, players at this level disappointed us, so the result is clear. But we won't cover our heads with ashes; there's a lot of work ahead."

I also want to thank our fans who supported the Ukrainian team on Cyprus.

Euro-2023 (U-17). Elite round qualification. Group 6

March 7, 2023

Italy — Ireland — 2:2

Cyprus — Ukraine — 2:4

March 10, 2023

Ukraine — Ireland — 0:3

Italy — Cyprus — 2:1

March 13, 2023

Ukraine — Italy — 0:3

Ireland — Cyprus — 3:2

Final standings

In the elite round, 32 teams are divided into eight groups, with 15 spots available for the final tournament, which will take place from May 17 to June 2 in Hungary. The group winners and seven second-place finishers with the best results advance to the finals, along with the host country.

Euro-2023 (U-17). Elite round qualification

Group 1: Serbia, Israel, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Belarus.

Group 2: Montenegro, Wales, Scotland, Iceland.

Group 3: Netherlands, England, Denmark, Northern Ireland.

Group 4: Spain, Germany, Turkey, Finland.

Group 5: Portugal, Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia.

Group 6: Italy, Ukraine, Cyprus, Ireland.

Group 7: Belgium, Norway, Croatia, Slovenia.

Group 8: France, Switzerland, Latvia, Albania.

Recall that in the qualifying round of Euro-2023 (U-17), under Yuriy Moroz's leadership, the Ukrainian youth team secured first place in their group, ahead of Azerbaijan (5:2), Liechtenstein (7:0) and Bosnia and Herzegovina (1:1).