Ukraine national team newcomer Vladyslav Velyten spoke about his first call-up to the national team, emotions, and goals with the blue-and-yellow ahead of the match against Iceland for the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.

The interview with the press service of the national team was given by the 23-year-old half-back after a training session in Polish Opole.

"To describe my state now, one word is enough — happy. I will be even happier if we win these two matches. It's pleasant to train with the best players of Ukraine. Today's practice was light, but I think tomorrow's will be harder and more interesting."

I found out about my call-up from Polissya representatives when they substituted me in the match. Around the 70th minute, during a break. Went to the under-the-stand area because it was quite cold there, and that's where I got the news. Probably an unusual case. Of course, I reacted positively. First, I told my girlfriend about it, but by the time I got home from Zhytomyr to Kyiv, people were already calling me and messaging me. My phone was red. I was happy but not nervous because I understood that I needed to keep working hard and playing football.

As for my personal goal at this camp — if I get on the field, I want to contribute something positive to the team. Among the national team members, I knew some guys from youth teams — Vana, Voloshin, Brachyk, Zabarko. And of course, teammates from Polissya — Hutsulaka, Nazarenko, Mykhaylichenko. No special adaptation in the camp for me was needed. I know half of the team because we've played together before.

We watched Iceland today — a strong team that knows how to play football. They have good attackers too. It will be an interesting game. We also talked about Azerbaijan. With them, we need to press more and attack, shoot at the goal. In the previous match, there was a lot of control, but the IG was small," — said Vladyslav Velyten.

Recall that the third round group stage match between Iceland and Ukraine for the 2026 World Cup qualifiers will take place on October 10 in Reykjavik at the Laugardalsvöllur Stadium (kick-off — 21:45 Kyiv time).