World Cup
Jozsef Szabo: “Thanks to him, the Ukrainian national team managed to qualify for the World Cup play-offs”
Former coach of Dynamo Kiev Jozsef Szabo Italy admits he is considering Genoa midfielder Ruslan Malinovsky One of the best Ukrainian players this season.
“Ruslan Malinovsky seems to have found a second young man after his injury. This man has a clear head, making great passes is not difficult for a midfielder.”
Largely thanks to Malinovsky’s effective play, the Ukrainian national team managed to qualify for the play-offs in the 2026 World Cup qualifying tournament,” says Szabo.
Malinovsky played 19 matches for Genoa this season, scoring 2 goals and making 3 assists. The 32-year-old midfielder’s club managed to get out of the relegation zone by collecting 19 points and rose to 15th place in the rankings.
Ruslan scored three goals and made one assist in the three matches the Ukrainian national team played in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.
Source: Sport UA
I am a writer at Sportish, where I mainly cover sports news. I’ve also written for The Guardian and ESPN Brasil, and my work has been featured on NBC Sports, SI.com and more. Before working in journalism, I was an athlete: I played football for Colgate University and competed in the US Open Cross Country Championships.