High flying soccer clubs could boost national team

With two teams flying high in European club competitions, Ukraine’s national side should be in top form to challenge the best teams in Europe with the Euro 2012 tournament fast approaching.

But the continued speculation about a new manager, with the current boss only in a temporary role, is continuing to damage prospects for cohesion as less than 450 days remain before next year’s championship, which Ukraine is co-hosting.

Eleven players called up to play in the March 29 exhibition, or friendly, match against Italy are from big-hitting domestic clubs Shakhtar Donetsk and Dyanmo Kyiv. Both are still in the thick of battling for honors in the Champions League and the Europa League, respectively, Europe’s premier soccer tournaments for clubs.

The Pitmen have advanced to the Champions League quarterfinals in April while the White-Blues are on the verge of surging past Manchester City for a quarterfinals berth after soundly beating the English side 2-0 in the first leg in Kyiv last week.

The two clubs’ success in European club competition was not lost on Dynamo’s veteran striker Andriy Shevchenko.

“The objective of winning the [2012] European Championship has been set for us, and I see lots of factors helping us achieve it,” Shevchenko, 34, said. “Here [in Kyiv] are familiar walls, support from the fans and, lastly, the successful performance of Dynamo and Shakhtar on the European arena,” the all-time leading goal scorer of the Blue and Yellows said on March 11.

Six Dynamo, five Shakhtar and three players apiece from Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk, Metalist Kharkiv and Karpaty Lviv were called up along with Anatoliy Tymoschuk from Bayern Munich and Andriy Dykan from Spartak Moscow.

There are no newcomers to the national team this time, signaling caretaker coach Yuriy Kalytvyntsev’s growing confidence in choosing the right players for next year’s tournament.

However this could change any day as Ukraine’s soccer federation has made it clear that Kalytvyntsev’s managerial stint is temporary. There’s been speculation that former national coach Oleksandr Blokhin, Italy’s Marcello Lippi and even Argentina’s Diego Maradona could take the helm.

“The situation is unacceptable, a head coach should’ve been named last year,” said TV soccer commentator Ihor Miroshnychenko. “Because the new manager will have his own vision, his own strategy of who to play and such moves could negatively affect the team’s psychology when made soon before Euro 2012.”

The game against Italy will be the national team’s 12th friendly since 2010. Friendly matches with European powerhouses France and Germany, both former World Cup holders, are also scheduled for June and November, respectively.

The last world-class team Ukraine played was Brazil in October 2010.

However, the Ukraine team is well behind the 16 friendly matches that Poland has played and will fall behind one more match as Poland plays two friendly matches this month.

Both national teams have been eager to stay in shape having automatically qualified for the Euro 2012 as co-host countries without having to officially compete.

The Ukraine -Italy friendly will be broadcast live on Inter channel on March 29, 21:45. Ticket prices range from Hr 50 to Hr 250.

Source: Football Federation of Ukraine

Kyiv Post staff writer Mark Rachkevych can be reached at [email protected]