“Even an outsider can do his best.” Captain of the Ukrainian national team – about Sweden

Captain and central defender of the Ukrainian national team Nikolay Matvienko In an exclusive interview for Sport.ua, he talked about the match against Sweden in the 2026 World Cup qualification play-offs:

“I think this is the strongest team we can get. Right now everyone is focusing on the situation of the Swedes. But our meeting will take place in two months. Everything can change. Sweden has a very strong squad and most of their players represent elite European clubs. They, like us, have the goal of reaching the World Championship, so we have a very tough match ahead of us.”

For me, the poor performance of the Swedes in the qualifying tournament means nothing. Every team can do their best in a match, even if it is an outsider, and Sweden is one of the strong European teams, that’s for sure. For the Ukrainian national team, this will be a match of life, like all previous matches. “After all, we understand that a war is going on in the country, and every victory, even on the sports front, brings joy to Ukrainians in such a difficult period.”

The match between Ukraine and Sweden will be played on March 26, 2026 at 21:45 Kiev time.