The Ukrainian women's national football team (WU-17) has arrived in the Romanian city of Buftea, located 20 kilometers from the capital Bucharest, where they will participate in the traditional UEFA Development Tournament.

"These competitions occupy a significant place in the sports calendar," said head coach of the Ukrainian women's team Sergei Sapronov in an interview with the official website of the UAF. "Firstly, girls have a relatively rare opportunity to showcase their skills on an international stage, and secondly, the best among them will catch the eye of selectors for national teams who will conduct matches in the first qualifying round for the 2024 European Championship among 17-year-olds this fall. That is why we were eagerly awaiting this April test. Taking advantage of the opportunity, I would like to thank the leadership of the Romanian Football Federation for organizing a four-day training camp for Ukrainians in Buftea."

"The Ukrainian women's team (WU-17) recently won the right to participate in League A of the Euro 2024 qualifiers this fall. How many players who earned this qualification remain on your roster?"

"Six. Those who have aged out, I hope, will be able to secure a place in the national youth women's team. The rest of the potential candidates we will review at the tournament in Romania and during summer preparations for the Euro 2024 starting round."

"How many Ukrainians have come to Romania?"

"Twenty. Literally at the last moment, we had to make six substitutions due to various reasons. The core of the team is made up of players from 'Ladomir'."

By the way, according to the UEFA Development Tournament regulations, each player must play a minimum of 90 minutes in three scheduled matches. As you can see, there will be an opportunity for everyone to showcase themselves. Another interesting detail: in case of a draw after regular time, a penalty shootout will immediately follow. So during preparation, we will also have to hone the ability to score accurately from the 11-meter mark. And we will try to compensate for the lack of game practice with maximum readiness.

"What can you say about future competitors?"

"It's important that they represent different football schools. In my opinion, teams from Azerbaijan, Greece and Romania are worthy rivals; it will be interesting to challenge them."

We remind you that in March, Sergei Sapronov's wards earned the right to move up a class. In Group W6 of the second round of Euro 2023 (WU-17) qualifiers, Ukrainians secured their place by defeating Bulgaria (2:1) and Latvia (5:0) to return to the higher division.

Ukrainian women's national team WU-17 roster

Goalkeepers: Svitlana Snihur ('Veres' Rivne), Anna Harchenko ('Dynamo' Kyiv), Uliana Solovyova ('Dnipro-1' Dnipropetrovsk).

Defenders: Alina Savka ('Vorskla' Poltava), Elizaveta Maslovskaya ('Shakhtar' Donetsk), Mariia Ignatenko, Diana Tkachuk (both — 'Ladomir' Volodymyr-Volynskyi), Valentina Supryadkina ('Dynamo' Kyiv), Sofia Verzhnyak ('Yunost' Chernihiv), Eva Balatska (DSK-26 Kyiv), Kateryna Derkach ('Lyceum' Kostopil).

Midfielders: Viktoriia Savkina, Zoria Gladun (both — 'Ladomir' Volodymyr-Volynskyi), Anna Babich ('Yunost' Chernihiv), Anastasiia Zhigadlo ('Dynamo' Kyiv), Oleksa Nosko ('EMS-Podillya' Vinnytsia), Kamilla Kostiuchenko ('Podillia' Kyiv/'Yunost' Chernihiv).

Forwards: Olena Martchenyuk ('EMS-Podillya' Vinnytsia), Sofia Konovalova ('Ladomir' Volodymyr-Volynskyi), Evelina Kupcova ('Kryvbas' Kryvyi Rih).

UEFA Development Tournament among teams WU-17

23.04.2023

Azerbaijan — Ukraine (11.00)

Romania — Greece (16.00)

25.04.2023

Greece — Ukraine (11.00)

Romania — Azerbaijan (16.00)

28.04.2023

Greece — Azerbaijan (10.00)

Romania — Ukraine (14.00)

Match times are in Kyiv time.