– To Serhii Oleksandrovych, what do you think are the chances of the Ukrainian national team in the group of the 2026 World Cup qualifying cycle, where the yellow and blue will have to play Iceland, Azerbaijan and the winner of the France/Croatia Nations League match?
– Both the French and the Croats have strong national teams. But still, I would like Croatia to be in the group with Ukraine. But I also want to say that in any case the favorites of our quartet will be the French or the Croatians. And the second place will be on our teeth! We should occupy at least the second position in this group. In other words, the second national team of Ukraine must stand up in order to fight for a ticket to the World Cup later in the play-off matches. I hope so! The second place must be taken exactly, and as for the first position, how will it turn out. A lot will depend on how we play against France or Croatia. It will also be important how well we play in the first round against the winner of this pair. After the match of the first round, a lot will be clear. But, I repeat, we must take the second place in this group!
– In general, what were your impressions of the performances of Shakhtar and Dynamo in the European Cups?
– Of course, I expected more from Dynamo Kyiv. Somehow it was not possible to play in them successfully in this season of European Cups. For the first time in history, Dynamo demonstrated such results. Scored only one goal, lost all matches. Perhaps, in the remaining two matches, the Kyivans will adjust and take points into Ukraine’s coffers. Although the rivals in the form of “Galatasaray” and “RFSH” are not weak either. But everything will depend on what will be Dynamo’s mood and how they will play. Regarding Shakhtar, we can say that in principle the Donetsk team played well in some matches. And the “miners” would at least take 4 points! But I would like our teams to collect more points in the treasury of Ukraine for the table of UEFA coefficients. I want to emphasize that we are counting on Shakhtar and Dynamo to score points for Ukraine’s coffers! This is necessary in order for more of our teams to play in the European Cup arena in the following seasons.
– But against the background of the failure in the European Cups, “Dynamo” won the first half of the UPL!
– “Dynamo” simply has a small reserve bench in order to play in the UPL and European Cups. In connection with this, they somehow lacked football players for the Europa League. In Kyiv, the same Shaparenko and Pikhalyonok were injured and also missed matches. And these are the leaders who could help the team in important matches. Also, maybe “Dynamo” somewhere had a great mood for the championship of Ukraine in order to win it. And because of that, I probably didn’t have enough strength for the Europa League match. And Shakhtar, on the contrary, played more or less well in the European arena, and in the Ukrainian championship in the first half of the season, to be honest, performed poorly. In the entire history of Shakhtar, as far as I can remember, this is probably the most unsuccessful season for him.
– By the way, “Shakhtar” lost to “Alexandria” and twice lost to “Polyssia”! What could this be related to?
– In defense, not everything worked out for them. We are used to the fact that Shakhtar scores a lot of goals in the championship of Ukraine. Although in some matches, Donetsk residents certainly scored enough goals!
– What can you say about your former team “Alexandria”?
– “Alexandria” surprised this year! Rotan is well done in the sense that he gave the team a game. The people of Alexandria play pretty good football! They play aggressively when needed. I believe that Rotan prepared the team very well this season. In that year, he was criticized for his results. And this season, he worked very well with his coaching staff and proved that they are on the right path.
– But to the second “Alexandria”, in addition to “Shakhtar”, the same “Kryvbas” is also approaching somewhere. And “Polissya” still has a chance!
– I still thought that Polissya would fight for third place. As for Kryvbas, it should be noted that they are already in fourth place. And if the Kryvyi Rih team continues to play in the same spirit, it can even compete for third place!
– You, as a specialist in scored goals and the best goal scorer in the history of the First League, what do you think about the fight for the best sniper of the Ukrainian Premier League? Now Vanat is leading with 10 goals, and the second Hutsuliak has 9 autographs in the opponents’ goal! Who has more chances to take first place?
– I think that Vanat definitely has the best chances. Of course, this is due to the fact that “Dynamo” Kyiv plays attacking football. He has many moments in games, which means he has more chances to score. And Vanat, being a central striker, is simply obliged to score the most! Hutsuliak is a great scorer, but he still plays the role of an extreme attacking midfielder. Therefore, I believe that Vanat will overtake him anyway. I will repeat, because “Dynamo” plays attacking football, and Vlad, as a central attacker, should surpass everyone in this indicator.
– Filippov also showed a normal performance. With 6 goals, does he still have a chance to become the best?
– It will be more difficult for Filippov to do it in the sense that Vanat will have more moments in the games. Therefore, I bet that after all, Vanat will become the best goal scorer. Filippov will fight! There are no questions here. But Vanat still wins.
– Regarding Filippov, what can you add? Does it show stability?
– Well done Sanya! Filippov proved his level of play in “Dnipro-1” and is now proving his level of play in “Alexandria”. He is a stable experienced player. Filippov will undoubtedly compete with Vanat!
– Can Shakhtar players claim the title of the best? The same Sudakov?
– Sudakov will definitely not be the best scorer. After all, attackers should be number one in such a race. The striker should score the most. I believe that from Shakhtar Sikan, who is a forward, will fight to get into the top three scorers of the UPL. But still, I think Vanat will win!
– Although Hutsulyak and Nazarenko from Polissia also scored a lot! They have 16 goals for two!
– I understand it perfectly. But they are wing attacking midfielders, not centre-forwards. It means a lot! Although Hutsulyak and Nazarenko are well done. God forbid that they also score in the second half of the season! They can credit their game in the first half of the season!
Source: sport.ua