The head coach of Ukraine's youth team (players born in 2006 or later), Yuriy Moroz, was satisfied with how his wards executed instructions on the field.

In the qualifying round for Euro-2023 (U-17), which has just concluded, Ukraine's youth team secured first place in their group, ahead of Azerbaijan, Liechtenstein, and hosts Bosnia and Herzegovina. The official website of the Ukrainian Football Association asked the head coach of the blue-and-yellow team, Yuriy Moroz, to sum up his team's performance.

"Yuriy Leonidovich, Ukraine's national team won their group. Are you satisfied with your wards' actions?"

"Completely. The game plan was visible. The boys tried to execute everything we agreed upon. I liked how the team pressed and reacted to changes on the football field. We used width, depth, and all that we worked on before the tournament quite well. Of course, I wouldn't say everything went perfectly, but discipline in play also pleased me."

"Was the decisive match against Bosnia and Herzegovina difficult?"

"Yes. But, I think we made this game more challenging for ourselves. After confident wins in the first two matches, the task was completed. Still, children's psychology affects all these things. Maybe there was even some under-preparation by the coaching staff because the first half was sluggish and scoreless. However, after halftime, there was already more aggression and desire, making it a dynamic period. But unfortunately, we didn't quite persevere to achieve the maximum result."

"Seven out of thirteen goals scored by Ukraine's national team are credited to Matviy Ponomarenko. A talented boy?"

"To talk about his talents now may be premature, but he has good potential and the goals scored confirm that. I would like to acknowledge the entire team. And of course, it's nice to thank clubs for their quality preparation of the boys. We only needed to unite the collective in terms of gameplay."

Composition of Ukraine's U-17 Youth Team

Goalkeepers: Markiyan Bakus ("Rukh" Lviv), Viacheslav Surkis ("Zorya" Luhansk), Marco Kessel ("Slavia", Czech Republic).

Defenders: Vladyslav Zakharchenko, Maxim Korobov, Denis Diky, Yegor Rudenko (all - "Zorya" Luhansk), Artur Bakay ("Salzburg", Austria), Danilo Garaga ("Dnipro-1" Dnipropetrovsk), Oleksiy Bezruchuk ("Kolos" Kovalivka).

Midfielders: Viktor Tsukanov, Denis Smytana (both - "Shakhtar" Donetsk), David Bilyi, Danilo Yshchenko, Kiryl Osypenko (all - "Zorya" Luhansk), Kiryl Dytchyar, Danilo Kaidalov, Hennadiy Synchuk (all - "Metalist" Kharkiv).

Forwards: Danilo Khan ("Dnipro-1" Dnipropetrovsk), Vladyslav Kalyn, Kiryl Pashko, Vitaliy Lobko, Matviy Ponomarenko (all - "Zorya" Luhansk), Maxim Kovalev ("Rukh" Lviv).

Euro-2023 (U-17). Qualifying Round. Group 2

October 24, 2022

Azerbaijan — Ukraine — 2:5

Bosnia and Herzegovina — Liechtenstein — 2:0

October 27, 2022

Ukraine — Liechtenstein — 7:0

Bosnia and Herzegovina — Azerbaijan — 1:0

October 30, 2022

Ukraine — Bosnia and Herzegovina — 1:1

Liechtenstein — Azerbaijan — 0:8

Final Standings

The top two teams from each of the 13 groups and four best third-place finishers (based on results against the first and second-placed teams in their group) will join the elite round in the Netherlands and Spain. The draw for the elite round will take place on December 8. 

Hungary's national team secured a direct entry to the final stage of Euro-2023 (U-17) as tournament hosts.