The Ukrainian U-17 national team returned home after a 10-day camp in Croatia. There, the blue and yellow played in an international tournament where their opponents were the hosts as well as teams from Israel and Greece.

Coach of our national team Oleksandr Sytnyk spoke about the results of the camp in an interview with the official website of UAF.

— Mr. Oleksandr, what are your conclusions from this work?

— Our primary task was to check the players and their readiness to work at such a level, as many of the boys were joining the national team for the first time. 

Regarding the matches directly, the first match against Greece (3:1) turned out well both in terms of gameplay and result. The large defeat by Israel (0:5) was not due to much. Firstly, our team lacked freshness as we had one day less for rest. In each episode, the opponent was half a step ahead. There was a certain imbalance, which led to a lack of concentration and problems in transitional phases. Realization also let us down. 

And then came the third match against Croatia (0:0), which served as a good lesson for us. The coaching staff wanted to see how the team reacts after losing to Israeli players. And I can say that behind a strong opponent, our national team had a decent look. The game was roughly equal, and the score on the board reflects what happened on the field. 

But again, the result of these matches was not the top priority. We are building a team, and our task is to make sure that Ukrainian players progress, move up in their career paths, and grow into the main national team.

— How did our overseas players perform?

— Among these players were newcomers. This is the same Zahar Onyshchuk, Vsevolod Linnikov, and Danyil Pylipchuk. Overall, the overseas players left a pleasant impression. We got to know them better, learned more about their qualities, saw how they perform under pressure, and how they adapt to demands. Therefore, we will continue to observe their progress.  

U-17 Youth Tournament in Croatia

11.02. Ukraine — Greece — 3:1

11.02. Croatia — Israel — 3:1

13.02. Israel — Ukraine — 5:0

13.02. Croatia — Greece — 2:0

16.02. Croatia — Ukraine — 0:0

16.02. Israel — Greece — 0:0

Final Table

Reminder, the Ukrainian U-17 national team will participate in the second round of qualification for Euro-2026 in group 6 of League V, where they will face teams from Latvia and Albania. The tournament in their group from March 3 to June 9 will be hosted by Albania.

Europa League 2026 (U-17). Second Round Qualification

League A

Group A1: Germany, France, Slovenia, North Macedonia.

Group A2: Iceland, Portugal, Italy, Romania. 

Group A3: Sweden, Montenegro, Greece, Norway.

Group A4: Czech Republic, Kazakhstan, Austria, Denmark.

Group A5: Belgium, Cyprus, Serbia, Switzerland.

Group A6: Spain, Turkey, Scotland, Northern Ireland.

Group A7: Ireland, Slovakia, Croatia, Poland.

League B

Group B1: Israel, Faroe Islands, England, Estonia.

Group B2: Bulgaria, Lithuania, Malta, Azerbaijan.

Group B3: Wales, Georgia, San Marino, Andorra.

Group B4: Finland, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Moldova, Gibraltar.

Group B5: Hungary, Luxembourg, Armenia, Liechtenstein.

Group B6: Ukraine, Latvia, Albania.

Group B7: Netherlands, Belarus, Kosovo.

In the second round, 28 teams (14 winners of groups from the first round and 14 teams that took the second place) will compete in seven League A groups until March 31. The winners of the quartets will join the host, Estonia, for the final stage, which runs from May 25 to June 7, 2026. The draw is scheduled for April 9.

Meanwhile, 26 teams will compete in seven League B groups (five — four teams each, two — three teams) until June 30.

Both tournaments are important in the context of forming Leagues A and B for the first round of Euro-2028 (U-19).