The head coach of Ukraine's youth national team (players born in 2005 or later), Oleg Kuznetsov, spoke about the team's preparation for the Euro-2024 (U-19) qualifying round.

The Ukrainian youth national team has started preparing for the Euro-2024 (U-19) qualifying round, which will take place in Malta from November 15 to 21. It is worth noting that, along with the hosts, Ukraine will face Kosovo and Slovakia.

The head coach of our national team, Oleg Kuznetsov, spoke about the upcoming plans on the official website of the Ukrainian Football Association (UAF).

— Oleh Volodymyrovych, is the squad that will travel to the qualifying round for the European Championship optimal?

— I think so. While a recent gathering in South Korea included many new players, this time we focused on those who have played regularly.

— But there are still some newcomers...

— Yes. We've been following Timur Tutyurov for a long time, when he was playing for "Kolos." Now he is regularly appearing with Sunderland's youth team. Alexander Pishchur has received good reviews as a tall forward from the Puskas Academy. Bogdan Manuilov has also shown well in Spain. I hope these boys will help us.

— Will the team have much time to prepare for the tournament?

— We left Kiev early on the 11th and arrived in Malta late on the 12th. In essence, we will have only two full working days.

— What do you know about your upcoming opponents?

— We have gathered more information about Malta's national team since they are our first-round opponents. As for Kosovo and Slovakia, we will get to see them at the tournament.

— Can Ukraine be considered a favorite in this group?

— I wouldn't be so categorical. The Maltese are hosts, so they will be highly motivated. We have faced Kosovo before and won, but it was a very tough match for us. Slovakia always has promising young talent. Therefore, I would not single out any team. All opponents have roughly equal chances of success.

— Can we skip the goal of the blue-and-yellow team?

— Our team has no other goal than to qualify for the elite round of the European Championship selection.

Squad of Ukraine's U-19 National Team

Goalkeepers: Vladyslav Kravets («Shakhtar» Donetsk), Vyacheslav Surkis («Dynamo» Kyiv), David Fesuk («Gajduk», Croatia).

Defenders: Denys Diky, Nazar Balaba, Oleksiy Husev, Taras Mykhavko (all — «Dynamo» Kyiv), Maksym Ogarkov («Shakhtar» Donetsk), Stepan Lisenko («Gajduk», Croatia).

Midfielders: Dmytro Kremanin, Roman Salenko (both — «Dynamo» Kyiv), Yevheniy Mykytyuk («Polesye» Zhytomyr), Vitaliy Mykhailov («Minay»), Danyil Vashchenko («Oleksandria»), Maksym Melnychenko («Dnipro-1» Dnipropetrovsk), Maksym Derkach («Eshtoril», Portugal), Bogdan Manuilov («San Jose», Spain).

Forwards: Timur Tutyurov («Sunderland», England), Matviy Ponomarenko («Dynamo» Kyiv), Serhiy Panchenko («Rukh» Lviv), Oleksandr Pishchur («Puskas Academy», Hungary).

Euro-2024 (U-19). Qualifying Round. Group 7

November 15, 2023

Ukraine — Malta (12:00)

Kosovo — Slovakia (15:30)

November 18, 2023

Ukraine — Kosovo (12:00)

Slovakia — Malta (15:30)

November 21, 2023

Slovakia — Ukraine (12:00)

Malta — Kosovo (15:30)

Match times are in Kyiv time.

Qualifying Group Compositions for Euro-2024 (U-19)

Group 1: France, Denmark, Iceland, Estonia.

Group 2: Norway, Hungary, Latvia, Gibraltar.

Group 3: Serbia, Scotland, Bulgaria, Andorra.

Group 4: Italy, Sweden, Switzerland, Liechtenstein.

Group 5: Germany, Poland, North Macedonia, Kazakhstan.

Group 6: Spain, Georgia, Cyprus, Moldova.

Group 7: Ukraine, Slovakia, Kosovo, Malta.

Group 8: Turkey, Greece, Belarus, Lithuania.

Group 9: Israel, Croatia, Armenia, Faroe Islands.

Group 10: Czech Republic, Romania, Finland, San Marino.

Group 11: Netherlands, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Azerbaijan, Luxembourg.

Group 12: England, Austria, Wales, Montenegro.

Group 13: Ireland, Belgium, Slovenia, Albania.

The winners of the first two places in each qualifying group and the best third-placed team based on results against the top two teams will join Portugal in the elite round of qualification. 

Northern Ireland, as hosts, have received a direct entry to the final stage, which will take place in summer 2024. There they will be joined by seven group winners from the elite round.