EURO 2024: Ukraine team holds open training session in Wiesbaden

13.06.2024 19:32

The day before the start of EURO 2024, the Ukraine national team held an open training session at BRITA Arena, located in Wiesbaden, the administrative center of Hesse.

Nearly five thousand fans attended the official Euro event, the majority of whom were Ukrainians forced to leave their homeland due to the full-scale invasion by Russian terrorists.

Photo by Andriy Yushchak

Before the training began, the Prime Minister of Hesse, Boris Rhein, welcomed the Ukraine team in the center of the field: “I am very glad that Ukraine has qualified for the European Football Championship in Germany. Ukraine belongs to Europe and the European football family. I hope that the games played by the Ukraine team can bring some comfort to people at home, as well as their compatriots who had to come to us in these difficult times. All Ukrainians are guests of friends — during the Euro and beyond. I wish Ukraine success in the European Championship! Glory to Ukraine!” Rhein said on Thursday at the open training session of the Ukraine team at BRITA Arena in Wiesbaden.

Photo by Andriy Yushchak

Ukraine’s head coach, Serhiy Rebrov, expressed his gratitude to the gracious hosts of the Euro: “We are already grateful to Germany, which is our important partner. We appreciate the opportunities provided for training and playing, and we sincerely thank all the fans who came to support us. Glory to Ukraine!”

Photo by Andriy Yushchak

After jointly singing the Ukrainian anthem with the fans present at BRITA Arena, the blue-yellows began their training session. Fans accompanied all the players’ exercises with applause and encouraging shouts. They loudly chanted the names of their favorites: “Mudryk, Yarmolenko, Lunin, Zinchenko, Talovierov, Sudakov...” Practically every player heard their name many times today. Fans reacted just as enthusiastically to every accurate shot, brilliant save, or skillful ball control.

Photo by Andriy Yushchak

The presence of the spectators did not affect the training schedule in any way. In addition to ball-holding exercises in squares, the players also had tactical tasks, including passing with finishing, shots on goal after passes, and working in seven-on-seven game series.

Photo by Andriy Yushchak

Twenty-five players participated in the training session — everyone except Vitaliy Mykolenko, who had an MRI yesterday. According to the national team’s chief doctor, Roman Zholobayluk, the examination showed that Vitaliy managed to avoid the worst consequences after the tackle by the Moldovan defender. Thus, the medical staff began active rehabilitation of the player, giving hope to see Mykolenko on the pitch in the EURO 2024 matches.

Photo by Andriy Yushchak

After the session, the players took the time to engage with the fans, signing autographs and taking numerous selfies upon request. It is tough to satisfy everyone’s interest, especially when nearly five thousand fans turn up, but the players were in no rush and walked along the entire fan line on one side of the field. Oleksandr Zinchenko even quickly ran to the opposite sideline, where there were fewer fans, also taking selfies and signing autographs for many.

Photo by Andriy Yushchak

As the team left the stadium, Ukrainians saw them off with countless blue-yellow flags and shouts of "Glory to Ukraine!" From the very first full day at EURO 2024, the Ukraine national team felt the powerful support and love of their fans, while also experiencing the unique status of the final tournament.

Photo by Andriy Yushchak

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, 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.