Andriy Shevchenko: "We had faith in our victory"

28.03.2024 15:07

President of the Ukrainian Association of Football Andriy Shevchenko commented on Ukraine's qualification for the EURO 2024 final stage after winning the playoff final against Iceland (2:1).

"I want to thank the Armed Forces of Ukraine once again — our boys and girls who allow us to play football for our country, for our fans. I want to thank the President of Ukraine for the constant support of the team. I want to thank every fan, every person who supports football, for our country.

These were very difficult matches for our team. We understand that in such matches when you make a mistake, it can cost you dearly. Therefore, there was some nervousness in the match against Iceland. But in the second half, when we started to control the ball well, the boys found their game.

Then there was a very cool goal from Tsygankov, which we missed in the first match against Bosnia and Herzegovina, as he was in good shape. The second goal from Mudryk was very spectacular. I am glad that he is starting to gain momentum. Now we will wait for the best that Mykhailo can show at EURO.

I think that not in every match you manage to score, but it is obligatory to play in them with dedication — especially in such important ones. And in the match against Iceland, the boys demonstrated this. We had full faith in them, in the coaching staff.

Sergiy Rebrov did an incredible job, as he took over the team at a very difficult moment. He completely changed it, and a very strong character appeared on the national team. Even when we were losing — 0:1, it was clear that the team wouldn’t break, but would fight until the end. This season, we have seen a lot of comebacks, and that's a good thing. We had faith in our victory, in ourselves. We have very talented people who can overcome everything," said Andriy Shevchenko.