Yurii Vernydub: Football is very popular in Kryvyi Rih, we play for our fans

The head coach of Kryvyi Rih "Kryvbas" Yuriy Vernydub gave an interview to the authoritative British publication The Guardian. The most relevant moments of the conversation are for your attention.

About the idol of childhood

"I'm from Zhytomyr, which is near Kyiv, my dad used to take me to Dynamo matches. I admired Valery Lobanovsky, who created great teams in the 70s and 80s. He is my idol, but I never knew him personally. Instead, I was there, in Zaporizhzhia, at his last game. It happened in May 2002, during my first season as an assistant coach of Metalurg Zaporizhzhia.

We were playing at home with Dynamo, and Lobanovskyi suddenly felt sick. He was taken to the hospital, and the best doctors were urgently called from Kyiv, but it was not possible to save him. A week later he died in my city. It was a great tragedy for the whole country and for me personally."

About the bronze awards of "Kryvbas"

"The last game day was May 25, it happened on the 249th anniversary of the birth of Kryvyi Rih. It was a great event for the city. People were so happy that we went to Europe. However, it is a shame that they cannot witness the games as the European matches will be played abroad. Football is very popular in Kryvyi Rih. We could easily fill the stadium."

About football during the war

"We miss the fans a lot and it's a huge disadvantage for us. In wartime, there should only be 500-600 spectators in the stands, because there should be room for everyone in the shelters. Unfortunately, these shelters are needed. Many shellings, Kryvyi Rih is often shelled. If we do not have 10-12 sirens, the day is considered successful. We are used to playing and training under sirens with rockets. The players have courage. We all have to take risks - that's what life is all about.

Many games have been suspended over the past two seasons. In May, our match against Polissia was interrupted in the first half and ended only the next day. But football still brings people joy and that gives us extra motivation. We will do our best for our fans and our nation. Qualifying for the group stage of the Eurocups in Kryvyi Rih would be incredible.

It may be more difficult than with Zorya, but I hope we will do even better. Despite the situation, we have many good foreign players. We have a very good training base. The players live there and get everything they need so they can focus on football."

Media of FC "Kryvbas" Kryvyi Rihaccording to the materialsTheguardian.com