The Ukrainian youth team that will participate in the World Cup U-20 has already arrived in Chile, where the tournament will take place. We remind you that at the group stage of the tournament, blue and yellow will have to play against teams from South Korea (September 27), Panama (September 30), and Paraguay (October 3).

About the team's readiness for the World Cup, its head coach Dmitry Mykhaylenko told the official website of the UAF.

— Mr. Dmitri, you have a lot of coaching experience behind your back, but is this upcoming World Cup still your biggest test?

— There were important seasons at the club level as well, but if we talk about the status of the tournament, then yes, that's exactly what it is. This is a World Cup with a national team, and that says it all.

— Are you worried?

— Not yet, because before leaving for the tournament there were many organizational issues to deal with, and there wasn't enough time for that. Everything was far from the players. Now that we have arrived in Chile and I see the boys' eyes, their mindset and motivation, a little bit of worry appears, but not more than that.

— From the lineup it's clear that you couldn't get all the strongest...

— That's right.

— Why is that?

— It doesn't make sense to name names now, I'll just say that some players were not released by their clubs because this isn't FIFA and UEFA, while others didn't make the list due to injuries. But we haven't become weaker as a result. The team is highly motivated. The absence of certain players can be compensated for with the strong qualities of others. It's important to ensure that the group is united and cohesive, since there are footballers who have been called up to this squad for the first time, and they need help in adapting as quickly as possible.

— What's your team's plan before the start of the tournament?

— Our first stop is Santiago, the capital of Chile. Tonight we will hold our first training session. On the 21st, we will play a friendly match against Australia, another World Cup participant, and on the 23rd we will move to Valparaiso, where we will play the first two group matches. For the third round, we will return to Santiago.

— What can you say about your opponents in the group stage?

— South Korea aims to play an intense vertical football, while their players actively occupy the opponent's penalty area. The Koreans make a lot of flank passes and are very disciplined. In the last two tournaments, this team achieved high results. In 2019 they were runners-up (losing in the final to Ukraine), and in 2023 they secured fourth place.

Panama aims to demonstrate technical football, they don't like to rush, well-organized. On their continent, this team achieves good results.

As for the Paraguayans, they are also technically skilled and effective in defense, the team is disciplined. They have naturalized Argentinians in their ranks, which adds strength to this squad. 

— Who's the favorite in our group?

— It's hard to say. This is youth football where one generation can be strong, while another may not be as competitive. I think that all opponents have roughly equal chances of advancing to the knockout stage.

— Then who, in your opinion, is the main contender for victory in Chile?

— For some reason, I think that South American teams will have an advantage. In addition to us underestimating certain key players, European teams are also missing out on important footballers. Meanwhile, Argentina, Brazil or Colombia don't face such problems.

— What's our goal for the World Cup?

— We want to at least make it out of the group stage. If this task proves within our reach, we'll see what happens next.

Ukraine U-20 squad

Goalkeepers: 1. Stanislav Vaniyvskyi («Stal» Zhydachiv, Poland), 12. Vladyslav Krapivcov («Girona», Spain), 16. Markian Bakus (LNZ Chernihiv).

Defenders: 3. Kyrylo Dytchyar, 13. Daniel Vernattus (both — «Metalist» Kharkiv), 4. Mykola Kyrichok («Karpaty» Lviv), 5. Vladyslav Kisil («Ponferradina», Spain), 6. Maksym Melnychenko («Polissya» Zhytomyr), 17. Maksym Derkach («Tukums 2000», Latvia), 20. Oleksii Gusiev («Kudryvka»).

Midfielders: 10. Hennadiy Synchuk («Montreal», Canada), 11. Danylo Krevsun («Borussia» Dortmund, Germany), 7. Artur Shahh («Karpaty» Lviv),   18. Bohdan Budko (AZ, Netherlands), 8. Daniil Vashchenko («Oleksandria»), 21. Matvii Panchenko («Metalist 1925» Kharkiv), 14. Kristian Shevchenko («Watford», England), 2. Vitaliy Katrych («Inhulets» Petrove), 15. Yaroslav Karaman («Polissya» Zhytomyr).

Forwards: 9. Matvii Ponomarenko («Dynamo» Kyiv), 19. Oleksandr Pyshchur (ETO, Hungary).

In Chile, on the night of September 21 to 22, blue and yellow will play a friendly match against another tournament participant — Australia (kick-off at midnight Kyiv time).

The CS-2025 (U-20) will take place from September 27 to October 19 in five cities of Chile: Valparaiso, Santiago, Viña del Mar, Rancagua and Talca. Twenty-four teams from six confederations will participate in the tournament. Initially, they will compete in six quadrants. The top two teams from each group, as well as four teams that finish third, will advance to the round of 16. Then it's a standard format.

CS-2025 (U-20) Group Draw

Group A: Chile, New Zealand, Japan, Egypt.

Group B: South Korea, Ukraine, Paraguay, Panama.

Group C: Brazil, Mexico, Morocco, Spain.

Group D: Italy, Australia, Cuba, Argentina.

Group E: USA, New Caledonia, France, PAR.

Group F: Colombia, Saudi Arabia, Norway, Nigeria.

Schedule of Ukraine's matches in Group B

27.09.2025. South Korea — Ukraine (23:00) 

30.09.2025. Panama — Ukraine (23:00) 

03.10.2025. Ukraine — Paraguay (23:00)