The Ukraine national under-19 football team secured a spirited comeback victory against Israel in the first match of the second round of the UEFA Euro 2027 qualification. The Group A6 fixture, hosted by Italy, took place on November 11 and ended in a 3-2 victory for Oleh Luzhnyi's side. The team, trailing after the first half, managed to turn the tide in the final minutes of regular time, scoring two goals in a single minute to start their qualifying campaign with three points.
Early strike and quick response
Israel took the lead in the 10th minute: Noam Cohen capitalized on an intercepted pass and coolly slotted home. However, the response from the 'blue-and-yellows' was swift—in the 13th minute, Oleksandr Dedov connected with a pass from Patrick Sikuta to restore parity. Thus, within the first quarter of an hour, the fans saw two goals, setting an open and high-scoring tone for the match.
Israel regains the lead
Before the break, the Israeli national team regained the lead. In the 40th minute, Ilay Ben Simon scored from close range, and the teams headed to the dressing rooms with a 2-1 score in favor of the visitors. For Ukraine, playing as the chasing side, this meant they had to not only equalize but also score a winner in the remaining time of the second half.
Two goals in a minute decide the match
The drama unfolded in the final stages. In the 86th minute, Oleksandr Dedov headed home from a corner kick to complete his brace and level the score. Just a minute later, in the 87th, Oleksandr Tkachenko received a pass from Ivan Bahrii and finished accurately into the bottom left corner to hand his team the victory—3-2. Two goals in 60 seconds effectively turned the game around and allowed the Ukrainians to claim maximum points in the opening match of the round.
Group standing and upcoming matches
In Group A6, with matches being played in Italy, the Ukrainians are set to face the hosts—Italy, as well as Romania, in addition to Israel. Oleh Luzhnyi's team will play their next match against Italy on November 14 and will wrap up their campaign in this stage with a match against Romania on November 17. According to the tournament rules, the three best teams from each League A group will advance to the third qualifying round of Euro 2027, making every remaining match crucial for qualification.
Context: new coach and qualifying start
It is worth noting that Oleh Luzhnyi took charge of the Ukraine U-19 team in mid-September, meaning the team entered the second qualifying round under the guidance of a new head coach. The comeback victory over Israel served as a confident start for him and his squad at this stage of the qualifiers, securing three points in the group standings before the clashes with Italy and Romania.
