Veteran of Shakhtar and the Ukrainian national team – about the October matches of the national team and the upcoming battle with Italy
Midfielder of the Ukrainian national football team Taras Stepanenko commented on the successful October for our national team in qualifying Euro 2024.
“We can only evaluate our performance positively, because we took a step towards the goal and received six points. We maintain good chances of qualifying for Euro 2024. In November we will prepare for the most important match of the year. I really hope we can achieve our goal.”
“It’s unpleasant when important players drop out; Viktor Tsygankov and Andrei Yarmolenko could not help us. Everyone was worried whether we could close these “holes.” Thank God that the guys who replaced them did a great job. Victor has already returned to training, and Andrei underwent surgery, which requires more time for recovery. He is the captain and leader of the team, his presence in the dressing room is very important, so we are looking forward to his return.”
“Every qualifying match is important, but fights with strong opponents give strength, energy and pleasure. Therefore, I could highlight the meeting with England in this qualifying tournament, when we played a draw.”
Let us remind you that 34-year-old Stepanenko led the Ukrainian national team to the match with North Macedonia on October 14 with the captain’s armband and helped them win (2:0). This game was his 80th in the national team.
In the next match, against Malta (3:1), Taras did not participate. He was under threat of disqualification due to too many yellow cards and risked missing the decisive match of the entire cycle against Italy.
The Ukrainian team scored 13 points in seven matches. The blue-and-yellows are in second place in Group C. England is in the lead, with Italy in third place. Squadra Azzurra has 10 points, but played one match less than Sergei Rebrov’s team.
In their final match, Ukraine will play against Italy on November 20. The blue-yellows will play their home match in Leverkusen.
Source: Sportarena
I’m Scott Moore, a professional writer and journalist based in the US. I’ve been writing for various publications for over 8 years now, and have been working as an author at athletistic for the past five years. My work has been featured by some of the leading sports websites and magazines across Europe.
