Ukraine
Group H | World ranking: 45 Coach: Oleg Blokhin
Key Players: Ruslan Rotan (midfielder), Andriy Shevchenko (forward)
Past Record: First time finalists Group H Results:
June 14: Spain (0-4 | Report)
June 19: Saudi Arabia (4-0 | Report)
June 23: Tunisia (1-0 | Report) Knockout Stages:
June 26: Switzerland (0-0 aet; Ukraine win 3-0 penalties | Report)
June 20: Italy (0-3 | Report) Group Summary:
Ukraine's reputation as dangerous outsiders suffered a blow when they slumped to a 4-0 thrashing on their tournament debut against a rampant Spain. But the Ukrainians subsequently found the net four times themselves against the lightweight Saudis with star striker Andriy Shevchenko showing the predatory instincts that have made him one of Europe's deadliest goalscorers. A tight win over Tunisia sealed a place in the last 16, though coach Oleg Blokhin will be aware that a repeat of their performance against Spain would soon end Ukrainian participation. Pre-Tournament Preview:
Ukraine were the first European team to book their place in the finals, topping the toughest of qualifying groups which included European champions Greece and World Cup semi-finalists Turkey. Superbly coached by former European footballer of the year Blokhin, Ukraine sealed their place on the back of a miserly defense -- which conceded just seven goals in 12 matches -- and the genius of AC Milan striker Shevchenko. During his seven years at the San Siro, Shevchenko has proved himself to be one of the world's great players and the 29-year-old finally gets a chance to display his talents in a major international tournament for the first time. SquadGoalkeepers:
1. Olexandr Shovkovskiy (Dynamo Kiev)
12. Andriy Pyatov (Vorskla Poltava)
23. Bohdan Shust (Shakhtar Donetsk) Defenders:
2. Andriy Nesmachniy (Dynamo Kiev)
3. Olexandr Yatsenko (FC Kharkiv)
4. Anatoliy Tymoschuk (Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk)
5. Volodymyr Yezerskiy (Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk)
6. Andriy Rusol (Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk)
13. Dmytro Chigrynskiy (Shakhtar Donetsk)
17. Vladislav Vashchuk (Dynamo Kiev)
22. Viacheslav Sviderskiy (Arsenal Kiev) Midfielders:
4. Anatoly Tymoshchyuk (Shakhtar Donetsk)
8. Oleg Shelayev (Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk)
9. Oleg Gusev (Dynamo Kiev)
14. Andriy Gusin (Krylya Sovietov Samara)
18. Serhiy Nazarenko (Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk)
19. Maxim Kalinichenko (Spartak Moscow)
21. Ruslan Rotan (Dynamo Kiev) Forwards:
7. Andriy Shevchenko (AC Milan)
10. Andriy Voronin (Bayer Leverkusen)
11. Serhiy Rebrov (Dynamo Kiev)
15. Artem Milevskiy (Dynamo Kiev)
16. Andriy Vorobey (Shakhtar Donetsk)
20. Oleksiy Byelik (Shakhtar Donetsk)
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