The head coach of Ukraine's U-21 national team, Ruslan Rotan, answered journalists' questions after the match against Croatia (2:0) at Euro 2023 (U-21):

— Emotions and experiences were present today. Up until our first goal, the quality of play fully satisfied us. The weather also made adjustments — it was very hot. We thank the boys for their self-sacrifice, character. We were a true team who wanted to achieve results and deserved them 100%. We thank the Armed Forces of Ukraine for standing behind us and allowing us to play and delight with victories.

— What was your plan for the match? How would you evaluate the opponents' game?

— Croatia was somewhat of a mystery because they had a new coach, making it hard to predict their actions. But we managed, figured out their strategy. We understood that Balkan teams would try to close off our midfield. However, we focused on our game and its improvement. I want to say that the first 30 minutes of our performance were excellent. In the second half, we adjusted according to the score. We knew Croatia would push forward. When we scored the second goal, we had very good counterattacks in which we could have scored more. Croatia looked dignified. Very strong individual players. The opponent created moments that we need to analyze.

— Your next match is against Romania. What do you think about this opponent?

— Right now, our task is recovery because matches are held every two days on the third day. We also need to analyze our game. As for Romania's team, they strive to play football like we do and attack. We will play away with total support from the opponent, it will be a full stadium, a sellout. Emotionally, it will be a tough match; we need to recover as best as possible. But still, we need to think about our game. I believe this will be an honorable match between two teams.

— How satisfied are you with the play of Bрагару, whom you replaced with Nazarenko? Why did you make that starting choice?

— As for our selection, we wanted to find a balance on the flank. It's important to understand that Sudakov is tired after playing matches for the national team. It was risky to start him from the first minute, so we preserved Georgiy. Bрагару added stability because Vіvcharenko actively joins attacks. Max works well between lines and one-on-one. Plus Kryskiv complements them from his side. So I believe we guessed right with this flank.

— Anatoliy Trubin made several saves today. This is already his fourth match in the last 10 days. Will Trubin remain the first choice for the team, or will you look at recovery?

— You correctly noted that the load on Anatoliy is great. He played three matches with the national team. But he gives us confidence in terms of coming out of defense and better understands our demands for goalkeepers. All three of our keepers have high skill, we could have put any one of them. But in this match, we needed stability, concentration, calmness. Overall, it turned out that way.