Thanks to Zubkov's debut goal, the national team of Ukraine defeated the team of Northern Ireland in a friendly match

03.06.2021 23:52

Photo by Pavlo Kubanov

The friendly match with the representatives of British football became the second and penultimate for the blue-yellows in the process of preparation for Euro 2020.

If during previous sparring, with Bahrain, most of the legionnaires were still absent from the training camp, now the coaching staff had almost a full set of players at its disposal. application for the final tournament. Therefore, the starting lineup of the blue-yellows was probably closer to the optimal and differed from the previous seven positions. However, Tsygankov, Sobol, Tymchyk and Zinchenko were not declared for the match from the list of 26, while Lednev, who was not included in the cherished list, was included in the protocol today. Which is not surprising, because it will still be possible to make changes to the European application.

Photo by Pavlo Kubanov

The first attack of the Ukrainians could have been effective, but Yarmolenko, who scored from the bottom of Yaremchuk's pass, made a little mistake. Clearly outlining their intentions, the blue and yellows ruled in the same spirit and soon celebrated success. Yaremchuk's dangerous shot by Peacock-Farrell parried the corner kick, which ended in a goal. The guests neutralized the first attempt, but at the second pace Karavaev hung exactly on Zubkov's head, and he scored in the opposite of the goalkeeper, scoring his first goal as part of the national team. 1: 0.

Photo by Pavlo Kubanov

Towards the middle of the half the speed subsided a bit. The Irish built their line of defense quite low, so the hosts, who continued to control the game, mostly spent time in the offensive. Yaremchuk and Yarmolenko, demonstrating excellent cooperation, created a few more moments before the break, but the score did not change. It was really hot at the opposite goal in the 36th minute, when Brown scored with a header after the penalty kick, and Bushchan made a save.

After the break, the intensity of the game was already lower, but the overall advantage of the national team of Ukraine remained. Malinowski did not hit the goal from the penalty spot from a promising position, and then Sudakov, thanks to individual actions, created a moment for Yarmolenko, whose shot was parried by the British goalkeeper. Besedin also had his chances. Towards the end of the match, the guests also made several dangerous passes to the Ukrainians' penalty area, in particular, from the standards.

Photo by Pavlo Kubanov

Therefore, in general, the national team of Ukraine had the opportunity not only to practice the game in attack, but also to some extent to check the reliability of defensive constructions, which, of course, speaks of the benefits of this sparring. And the result in the form of the first victory in 2021 should contribute to a positive mood in the team.

The next friendly match, which will be the final match and the last before Euro 2020, the national team of Ukraine will play on June 7 in Kharkov with the national team of Cyprus.

Photo by Pavlo Kubanov

Friendly Match

Ukraine - Northern Ireland - 1: 0 (1: 0)

Goal: Zubkov (10).

Ukraine: Bushchan, Mykolenko, Zabarny, Matvienko, Karavaev, Sidorchuk (Stepanenko, 76), Malinovsky, Shaparenko (Sudakov, 72), Yarmolenko (k), Zubkov (Marlos, 46), Yaremchuk (Besedin, 46).

Substitutions: Trubin, Popov, Kryvtsov, Pyatov, Makarenko, Dovbyk, Lednev, Bezus.

Trainer: Andrii Shevchenko.

Northern Ireland: Peacock-Farrell, Ballard, Ketkart, Brown (McClelland, 89), Ferguson (Smith, 68), McNair, McCann (White, 81), Dallas (k) (Charles, 89), Seville, Magnies (Lafferty, 61), McGinn (Thompson, 46).

Substitutions: Hughes, Bradley, McCalmont, Galbraith, Boyce.

Trainer: Ian Baraclaff.

Referee: Shimon Marciniak (Poland).

Booked: Besedin (90 + 2) - McNair (90 + 3).

June 3. Dnipro. Dnipro-Arena Stadium. 15 spectators.