Oleksandr Kosenko: Before leaving for the Netherlands, Ukraine will play two friendly matches against Kazakhstan

22.12.2021 15:05

Photo of FAU press service

The head coach of the Ukrainian national futsal team Oleksandr Kosenko praised the play of his wards against Azerbaijan and shared the team's future plans.

In preparation for Euro-2022 blue-yellows held two friendlies against Azerbaijan. In the first match in Baku, our team won with a score 4:0, in the second - 5:1.

The head coach of the national team of Ukraine Oleksandr Kosenko commented on such results in an interview to the Futsal Association of Ukraine press service.

- In Baku the national team of Ukraine managed to beat twice the highest-ranked opponent in the UEFA rankings. How satisfied were you with the team's game?

- Indeed, I am satisfied with the result and content of the game. Of course, there were some shortcomings. There is still work to be done. Among the positives, I would also like to note the usage of balls that the teams will play with in the European Championship. In addition, Baku had a fairly fast parquet. Probably as close as possible to Mondo. The ball moves very fast on it. We used different combinations of players. I think that the matches turned out to be quite useful for our team.

- For the first time in a long time the quartet Zvarych - Shoturma - Bilotserkivets - Korsun was present in the team. To what extent did this combination help to hold effective matches with Azerbaijan?

- You can just take a look at the statistics, and everything will be clear. In the first meeting, all goals were scored by these players or due to their actions, as in the case of an own goal. The boys also played the second match actively, although there were some experiments in the fours. Of course, it's good that they scored and created a lot of moments at the opponent's goal. I am glad that this quartet has been reborn.

- During the matches in Azerbaijan, the team conceded only one ball. Three goalkeepers flew to Baku as part of the national team. How would you rate their actions?

- The main goalkeeper of the Ukrainian national team is Kyrylo Tsypun. Yurii Savenko has shown in recent matches that he is also no less reliable when playing on the last frontier. As for Sukhov, if Oleksandr continues to work on himself - in the near future he may grow into a truly qualified goalkeeper. The team has healthy competition in the goalkeeping position.

— What happened to Serhii Malyshko during the first match? How serious was his injury?

- Serhii suffered a broken collarbone. During the challenge, the Azerbaijani player Gallo fell on him. It all ended in such an injury. Of course, it is unfortunate to lose such a player on the eve of the European Championship. I can only wish Serhii a speedy recovery and return to the floor. We are all with him and support a member of our team.

- In the second match, Ukraine managed to play with the fifth field and against the fifth field. How would you rate these aspects of our team's performance?

- We planned in advance that we will play with the fifth field, despite the run of play. It turned out that the score was 1: 1, but when they scored another goal, they continued to play in the artificial majority. In fact, something worked out, something didn't. There is time to work on the actions of the majority and improve the performance of this aspect of the game. It is good that they scored and did not concede. It adds confidence and positive emotions to the whole team.

- How will Ukraine prepare for the final part of Euro-2022?

- On January 10 the team's gathering begins. We will hold it in Bucha. We will train on the Mondo floor at the local sports academy. Before leaving for the Netherlands, the Ukrainian national team will play two friendly matches against Kazakhstan. They will take place on January 13 and 15. I hope that the matches against this team will help us prepare even better for the crucial tournament.