Today, March 3, the Ukrainian women's national team begins its journey in qualifying for the 2027 World Cup. On the eve of the match against the English national team, the head coach of our national team, Iya Andrushchak, answered questions from the official UAF website.

- The selection process begins. What goal do you set for yourself?

- The goal in this selection is to fight for a place in the World Cup. Then we divide the goal into elements. This is specifically preparing for each match and improving our actions in each phase of the game.

- The opponents at the start of your term are very serious. Do you like it or not?

- There are two sides to this coin. Of course, facing such top opponents at the start is not an easy test. On the other hand, I like this challenge, because in these matches we will get answers to all the questions about our capabilities at this stage.

- The selection scheme is interesting. What place is it realistic to fight for in the first stage?

- I believe that we are capable of fighting for third place in the group. This will give us a chance to face, let's say, a less strong opponent in the first play-off.

Photo: Dan Balashov

- What is the personnel situation before the match against England? Who is missing from the national team, is everyone healthy?

- Of course, our captain Daryna Apanashchenko is missing. Due to muscle injuries, Dayana Semkiv and Solomiya Kupʼyak were forced to leave the team. But we were able to call up Iryna Kotyash and Iryna Podolska. Lyubov Shmatko also had an injury, but today she was already in the general group.

- What is the atmosphere like before the match against the winner of the last two Euros? Do girls have any fears?

- Of course, we don't have much experience in matches at this level. The coaching staff and I are trying to instill confidence in the girls. My personal inner desire is for them to be brave in every game episode and enjoy such matches!