Serhiy Rebrov: "We play friendly matches to make mistakes in them"

08.06.2024 00:11

Following the friendly match against Poland, which ended in a 1:3 defeat, Ukraine's national team head coach, Serhiy Rebrov, held a press conference.

- The team's long unbeaten run was significant. Could this loss have a psychological impact?

- I believe that we play friendly matches to make mistakes in them. Football consists of many components. We lost in terms of duels and set-pieces. I don't think this game should be viewed solely negatively. There were good moments, and we tried to come back. This is very important information for us ahead of the Euros.

- What are your thoughts on Taras Romanchuk's goal?

- I am pleased that a Ukrainian player is representing Poland. I've only been with the national team for a year and haven't seen this player before, so I can't say much. I'm very happy for him because he is a Ukrainian player.

- How would you comment on the performance of the Polish team?

- You should ask your coach about your team's performance. It was an interesting game for you, and you won, which brings important emotions before the Euros. But I won't evaluate Poland's performance.

- Do you think Ukraine's play was too aggressive, despite the friendly nature of the match?

Why would it be considered too aggressive? Only at the end of the match was there an episode where Serhiy Sydorchuk collided with an opponent in a duel. I didn't see any particular aggression from either team. It was a very important match, and the players tried to show their best qualities in front of the coaches.

Ukraine squad for EURO 2024

Goalkeepers: 1. Georgiy Bushchan (Dynamo Kyiv), 12. Anatoliy Trubin (Benfica, Portugal), 23. Andriy Lunin (Real Madrid, Spain).

Defenders: 22. Mykola Matviyenko, 2. Yukhym Konoplia, 21. Valeriy Bondar (all Shakhtar Donetsk), 24. Oleksandr Tymchyk (Dynamo Kyiv), 16. Vitaliy Mykolenko (Everton, England), 13. Illia Zabarnyi (Bournemouth, England), 3. Oleksandr Svatok (FC Dnipro-1 Dnipro), 4. Maksym Talovierov (LASK Linz, Austria), 26. Bohdan Mykhaylichenko (Polissya Zhytomyr).

Midfielders: 7. Andriy Yarmolenko, 19. Mykola Shaparenko, 18. Volodymyr Brazhko (all Dynamo Kyiv), 6. Taras Stepanenko, 20. Oleksandr Zubkov, 14. Georgiy Sudakov (all Shakhtar Donetsk), 17. Oleksandr Zinchenko (Arsenal, England), 15. Viktor Tsygankov (Girona, Spain)
10. Mykhailo Mudryk (Chelsea London, England), 5. Serhiy Sydorchuk (Westerlo, Belgium), 8. Ruslan Malinovskyi (Genoa, Italy).

Forwards: 11. Artem Dovbyk (Girona, Spain), 9. Roman Yaremchuk (Valencia, Spain), 25. Vladyslav Vanat (Dynamo Kyiv).

The final game before the training camp will be against Moldova on June 11 in Chisinau. The match will kick off at 19:00 Kyiv time.

The next day, June 12, the team will arrive at their Euro 2024 base in the town of Wiesbaden.

Group E Match Schedule for EURO 2024

June 17: Romania vs Ukraine. Arena Munich, Munich. Kick-off: 16:00 Kyiv time.

June 17: Belgium vs Slovakia. Frankfurt Stadium, Frankfurt. Kick-off: 19:00 Kyiv time.

June 21: Slovakia vs Ukraine. Dusseldorf Arena, Dusseldorf. Kick-off: 16:00 Kyiv time.

June 22: Belgium vs Romania. Cologne Stadium, Cologne. Kick-off: 22:00 Kyiv time.

June 26: Slovakia vs Romania. Frankfurt Stadium, Frankfurt. Kick-off: 19:00 Kyiv time.

June 26: Ukraine vs Belgium. Stuttgart Arena, Stuttgart. Kick-off: 19:00 Kyiv time.

Kick-off times are in Kyiv time.