Illia Zabarnyi: "We need to maintain composure and give our all"

16.06.2024 17:20

Ahead of the opening match at EURO 2024 against Romania, Ukraine's national team defender Illia Zabarnyi joined head coach Serhiy Rebrov at a press conference.

"This is my second European Championship. It's a great honor to represent Ukraine. Everyone knows the times we're in right now in our country. I feel an incredible responsibility, but I'm not worried about my game. I've been through a lot both in football and in life. Being here now is thanks to our soldiers defending Ukraine. They are incredible people who give everything with their bravery. I'm very thankful to them. There's a big difference compared to the last Euro because now there's a full-scale war in our country. Now you always think about keeping your loved ones safe. It's something that weighs on all of us, but it also adds motivation to do everything we can on the field.

"Mircea Lucescu was my first coach in professional football. I want to thank him because he laid the foundation for my career and gave me a lot.

"In my opinion, Romania has good attacking players. It's a good team with experienced and strong individual performers, but I think we are ready to compete against this opponent.

"This will be a very emotional moment for us. When you see Ukrainian flags in the stadium and realize what's happening at home, it's hard to put into words. Every day is difficult, and people are dying every day. I want to thank everyone who supports us and allows us to play. This is important not only for football in Ukraine but also for our lives. We understand where we are and what we need to do. Before the match starts, it will be an emotional moment, but we need to maintain composure and give our all.

"I believe we have a quality team with players capable of making a difference. But most importantly, we play as one team," said Illia Zabarnyi.

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.