Yakovenko aims high with Ukraine Under-21s

Ukraine coach Pavlo Yakovenko did not disguise his ambition as he looked ahead to the UEFA European Under-21 Championship in Denmark.

Ukraine have been dealt a tough hand, with games against England and Spain to follow after they kick off their Group B campaign against the Czech Republic on 12 June, but their 46-year-old coach is thinking big. "I believe this team can find the right way to succeed in the tournament," he told UEFA.com. "We have one aim – to win every game. If you don't think like that there is no point playing football at all."

Senior Ukraine coach Oleh Blokhin has released Andriy Yarmolenko, Yaroslav Rakitskiy, Taras Stepanenko and Yevhen Konoplyanka from friendly commitments to link up with Yakovenko's 30-man provisional squad for the finals as they gather for training near Kyiv. Artem Kravets, Roman Zozulya and Mykola Morozyuk are in the first draft as well, having also experienced life in the full team.

Yakovenko is delighted that former USSR and FC Dynamo Kyiv forward Blokhin is helping his side. "I'm happy to have established a great relationship with Oleh Blokhin who has decided to release the players we want to play in Denmark," he said. "All our boys have fantastic potential but we have to solve the problem of the physical and psychological differences between players who represent different clubs."

Players from Dynamo and Premier-Liha champions FC Shakhtar Donetsk will not join the group until after they meet in Wednesday's Ukrainian Cup final, while injuries rule out FC Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk defender Pavlo Pashayev and FC Arsenal Kyiv midfielder Yegor Lugachev altogether. The provisional squad will be cut from 30 to 23 for the finals, with Yakovenko making the final call on 1 June.

For now, he is eager to put all his players through their paces. "We have a very busy schedule which includes a few friendlies against local sides," said Yakovenko. "We'll also pay a lot of attention to tactical work." He will keep an eye, too, on a younger set of players who are eligible for the 2013 finals. "They are preparing for friendlies against Iran and France, and it's possible some of them could join us before we head for Denmark."