Euro 2012 Group D: Ukraine
GROUP D
[Team Jersey Images © Soccerphile]
Ukraine
Road to Poland & Ukraine
This is the Ukraine's European Championship tournament debut as an independent republic, although many Ukrainian players featured as part of the multinational Soviet Union, including several stars of the 1988 Soviet team which finished runners-up to the Netherlands.
Like co-hosts Poland, Ukraine have used a multitude of players in friendlies, although coach Oleg Blokhin has seen his ageing outfit pull of a series of improved results in recent months - including a 3-3 draw with heavyweights Germany and a recent win over Austria.
Fixtures
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Ukraine Kit 1
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Ukraine Kit 2
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Ukraine v Sweden 11 June; Kyiv
Ukraine v France 15 June; Donetsk
Ukraine v England; 19 June; Donetsk
Analysis
How Ukraine cope with the pressure of co-hosting the tournament is anyone's guess, with Zhovto-Blakytni (the Yellow-Blues) having featured in only one other major tournament to date - the 2006 World Cup.
Nonetheless, several of the Ukraine's players have big-match experience, notably Bayern Munich midfielder Anatoliy Tymoshchuk - the country's most capped player, Dynamo Moscow striker Andriy Voronin and legendary front man Andriy Shevchenko.
Key player: Anatoliy Tymoshchuk
The bustling Tymoshchuk is a widely respected figure in his homeland and a natural leader of the team. Recently named the best footballer in Ukraine's brief history, the defensive midfielder mixes an uncanny ability to read the game with a desperate determination to win.
One to watch: Andriy Yarmolenko
The left-footed Dynamo Kyiv attacking talent has been capped at every level for the Ukraine, and with veteran Andriy Shevchenko struggling to overcome a series of debilitating back problems, 22-year-old Yarmolenko could be Ukraine's key attacking weapon.
Coach: Oleg Blokhin
One of Ukrainian football's most recognisable figures, Blokhin has returned for his second spell in charge of the national team. The only Ukrainian to win the European Footballer of the Year award, the 59-year-old is well aware his reputation won't save him if Ukraine fail to at least reach the quarter-finals.
Record*
1996, 2000, 2004, 2008 Did not qualify
Ukraine previously competed as part of the multinational Soviet Union*
FIFA Ranking
How they qualified for Euro 2012
Joint hosts with Poland.
On the sidelines
Ukraine's first international was a 3-1 loss to Hungary in 1992.
Soccerphile says
With home ground advantage and several old heads in their side, Ukraine should prove tough to beat. They may need to rely on that toughness having been drawn in a difficult group also featuring England, France and Sweden.
Ukraine play two of their fixtures in the newly rebuilt Donbass Arena - home of Shakhtar Donetsk and some of the most fanatical supporters in the country. That could give Ukraine a real edge, particularly as they play a fragile England side in their final group stage game, where they may use their status as tournament underdog to sneak under the radar of their more fancied opponent.
The Squad
Goalkeepers: Oleksandr Goryainov (FC Metalist Kharkiv), Maxym Koval (FC Dynamo Kiev), Andriy Pyatov (FC Shakhtar Donetsk)
Defenders: Bohdan Butko (Illychivets Mariupil), Olexandr Kucher (Shakhtar Donetsk), Taras Mikhalik (Dynamo Kiev), Yaroslav Rakitskiy (Shakhtar Donetsk), Yevhen Selin (Vorskla Poltava), Yevhen Khacheridi (Dynamo Kiev), Vyacheslav Shevchuk (Shakhtar Donetsk)
Midfielders: Olexandr Aliyev (Dynamo Kiev), Denys Garmash (Dynamo Kiev), Oleh Gusev (Dynamo Kiev), Yevhen Konoplyanka (Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk), Serhiy Nazarenko (Tavriya Simferopol), Ruslan Rotan (Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk), Anatoliy Tymoshchuk (Bayern Munich), Andriy Yarmolenko (Dynamo Kiev)
Forwards: Andriy Voronin (Dinamo Moscow), Marko Devic (Metalist Kharkiv), Artem Milevskiy (Dynamo Kiev), Yevhen Seleznyov (Shakhtar Donetsk), Andriy Shevchenko (Dynamo Kiev)