Leipzig, May 30, (dpa/GNA) – Ukraine’s national team was set to fly to Scotland on Monday for a World Cup play-off match, after training in Slovenia for the past weeks.
Many players have not had a competitive game in months, owing to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Coach Oleksandr Petrakov has said his team is ready for Wednesday’s game in Glasgow and raring to go.
“The players’ morale is sky-high. There is no need to influence them, to say anything, they are experienced footballers and understand everything perfectly well,” Petrakov said.
Shakhtar Donetsk defender Valerii Bondar, said at the camp in Slovenia which also included three test matches, “We are getting ready for one of the most important matches of our lives. We know why we’ve gathered here, why we do all this and train.”
Midfielder Oleksandr Zinchenko from English champions Manchester City, told the BBC “it’s not necessary to talk about motivation” because the team wants to make its war-torn country proud.
The match, which will be Ukraine’s first official one of the year, was originally scheduled for March but postponed after the invasion started.
The winner moves into a play-off final against Wales in Cardiff on Sunday, to determine who goes to the World Cup in Qatar.
“I can promise all the Ukrainian people that every one of us is going to give everything to win the game and to make them proud of us and just maybe for a few seconds we would like to give them this smile,” Zinchenko said.
“This game is one of the most important games in my life. The guys look ready and it’s not necessary to talk about motivation.
“The physical condition, obviously without the games, it’s not easy to prepare yourself for the guys that haven’t played for a while. In this case, there are no excuses and we have to do our job as best as we can.”
GNA