Serhiy Sapronov: "The organizers of the tournament in Romania noted that the Ukrainian women deserved first place based on their performance"

02.05.2023 16:38

Photo of UAF press service

Ukrainian national team WU-17 returned from the Romanian city of Buftia, where she participated in the UEFA Development Tournament, in which, in addition to the hosts, she also competed with peers from Greece and Azerbaijan.

"Participants under the age of 16 found out about the relationship," said the head coach of the girls' national team of Ukraine, Serhii Sapronov, in a comment to the official website of the UAF. — For the vast majority of my wards, this was the first exam in the international arena. And although in the end we let the Greeks go ahead, the organizers of the tournament noted that we deserved to be first based on the game.

— Then what prevented your wards?

— After a convincing victory in the opening round over the national team of Azerbaijan (4:0) our girls dictated the conditions in the next match as well, with the Greek girls. They significantly outnumbered them in terms of the number of created moments, but, unfortunately, the implementation failed. According to the regulations, if the main time ended in a draw, then a series of penalties was immediately played to determine the winner. And in this football lottery there is a lucky ticket reached opponents, although it is necessary to note our goalkeeper Svitlana Snigur, who parried two shots.

- In the final matches Ukrainian women won in the first leg against the home team - 3:0, but after the break they lost momentum and almost missed the victory...

- You know, it's all psychology. The girls decided that the question of the winner in this match was no longer relevant, calmed down and almost paid. By the way, after the end of the tournament, our coaching staff paid the most attention to the analysis of this confrontation. I hope that they reached the wards, and in the future they will not show such disrespect to female opponents.

— According to the rules of the tournament, each of the soccer players had to play at least 90 minutes in the three scheduled matches. So, all the participants had a chance to prove themselves. Did you get the necessary information about the capabilities of your wards?

— I think that with the backbone of the national team, which is 10-11 players, I have decided. I will continue to closely monitor the other participants of the competition in Romania. In parallel, the selection work will continue, in particular, from May 10 to 12, I plan to visit Khust, where the final part of the All-Ukrainian championship among 15-year-olds will be held. Taking this opportunity, I would like to thank the management of the UAF for holding the winter championship of Ukraine among 16-year-olds, where we took note of a whole group of soccer players who played at the Romanian tournament at the end of April. And the Romanian Football Federation should be given credit for a wonderful reception, because it not only took care of the four-day training camp, but also organized an excursion to the capital, Bucharest, on one of the days off.

Although after returning to my homeland, I told the girls that the greatest merit is that they have the opportunity to do what they love, the soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, who make heroic resistance to the Russian aggressor.

UEFA development tournament among WU-17 teams

23.04.2023

Azerbaijan - Ukraine — 0:4

Romania — Greece — 0:5

25.04.2023

Greece - Ukraine — 0:0, on penalty — 7:6

Romania — Azerbaijan — 4:0

28.04.2023

Greece - Azerbaijan - 3:0

Romania - Ukraine — 2:3

Standings