U-21: results of the performance of the youth team of Ukraine in qualification Euro-2019 against a historical background

26.10.2018 13:15

Photo of FFU press service

Ukrainian "youth" for the second place in the table of the qualifying group of the European Championship was not enough two points.

In October, the youth national team of Ukraine completed the next qualifying round for the European Championship - the 13th in a row. It will be recalled that only two were successful when our "youth" made it to Euro-2006 (where Oleksiy Mykhailychenko's team won silver medals) and Euro-2011 (then the promoted wards of Pavel Yakovenko did not leave the group).

The remaining 11 selections ended, by and large, one and the same. But even against their background, the statistics of the current cycle are not admirable. The national team of Ukraine won 50% of matches - five out of 10. More than half of the victories in our history were five times, less than half of the victories - only three times (Euro-2000, Euro-2004, Euro-2017). That is, the result of the performance in the selection of Euro 2019 is mediocre.

It could be better if there was no misfire in the first match - a draw in Jelgava. These two points were not enough for the second place in the standings, which looks like this: England - 26 points, Holland - 18, Ukraine - 17, Scotland - 14, Latvia - 4, Andorra - 3.

Youth team of Ukraine in selection of Euro-2019 (U-21)

But let's not forget about another goal of the youth national team coaches, which from a strategic point of view looks even more important than the tournament achievements. This is a run-in and transfer to the national team of Ukraine of the best of the best.

In this sense, Alexander Golovko has something to boast about. After all, the national team managed to shine eight players that he could count on in the selection of Euro 2019: Alexander Zinchenko - 21 matches (2 goals), Victor Kovalenko - 18, Mykola Matvienko - 14, Artem Besedin - 11 (1), Victor Tsygankov - 9, Andriy Lunin, Mykola Shaparenko, Volodymyr Shepelev - 2. With five of them, the coach worked in the youth team.

Almost all of them managed to help the "youth" in qualifying in some games (and some more often), but without them the potential of Golovko's team, of course, decreased. Although at the same time other performers got a chance to prove themselves.

And in terms of the number of young players who have already made their national team debut, Ukraine is on a par with England and the Netherlands - eight players each. Moreover, the Ukrainian youth played a total of 79 matches for the main team of the country, the English - 84 (here the weather is made by the star Dele Alli with the 31st match and Marcus Rashford with the 29th), the Dutch - 28 ...

Who played in the Euro 2019 selection (U-21)