Experienced Dynamo Kyiv goalkeeper Oleksandr Shovkovsky has decided to end his career playing for Ukraine's national football team.
“In a conversation with me, he told me that he had decided to end his career with the national team. I understood this decision and supported it,” Ukraine manager Oleh Blokhin told reporters on Tuesday at the team training camp in Koncha-Zaspa.
Blokhin said the veteran’s retirement from international football was a loss for the team, and, despite making some mistakes, Shovkovsky has always been one of the leaders of the national team.
Shovkovsky, 37, started playing for the national team in November 1994. He was the first-choice keeper for Ukraine at the 2006 FIFA World Cup. He saved two spot kicks in the penalty shootout against Switzerland in their second-round match, which sent Ukraine through to the quarterfinals, becoming the first goalkeeper in FIFA World Cup history not to concede a goal during a penalty shootout.
As reported, in early May, it became known that Shovkovsky had been ruled out of the Euro 2012 European Football Championship due to a shoulder injury picked up in the Ukrainian Premier League match against Volyn on April 22. He is expected to return to the pitch in early September.
