Dmitro Mykhailenko: "We have come a long way, and we need to look ahead with our heads held high"

Head coach of the Ukraine U-20 team, Dmitro Mykhaylenko, commented on his team's match in the 2025 World Cup round of 16 against Spain (0:1), after which the blue-and-yellow team ended their tournament.  "The situation with Synchuk disrupted our plans; it became clear just a couple of hours before the game.

Dmitro Mykhailenko: "We have come a long way, and we need to look ahead with our heads held high"

Photo by Andriy Yushchak

The head coach of Ukraine's U-20 national team, Dmitro Mykhaylenko, commented on his team's match in the round of 16 of the 2025 World Cup against Spain (0:1), after which the blue-and-yellow team ended their tournament run.

"The situation with Synchuk threw our plans off track; it became clear just a couple of hours before kickoff. This slightly knocked us off balance...

As for the match against Spain, emotions have now subsided, but during the game we believed until the very end that we would equalize and advance further. There were opportunities, there was pressure, and in the last 15 minutes, it was more due to drive and adrenaline.

The second half came out quite respectable; it was tough for the Spaniards. We've come a long way, and it's very unfortunate that we encountered such a strong team in the knockout stage—the European champions. Nevertheless, we need to look forward with our heads held high," — quotes Dmitro Mykhaylenko from the official 2025 World Cup (U-20) broadcaster "Sociálny Sport."

Ukraine's Path to the 2025 World Cup (U-20)

September 27, 2025. South Korea — Ukraine — 1:2

September 30, 2025. Panama — Ukraine — 1:1

October 3, 2025. Ukraine — Paraguay — 2:1

October 7, 2025. Ukraine — Spain — 0:1