Andriy Yarmolenko says Ukraine are not ready to let their UEFA Euro 2020 journey come to an end as they prepare to take on Sweden in the Round of 16 on Tuesday night.
Strangely, Yarmolenko and his teammates found themselves in the position of cheering their next opponents on last week, when they needed Sweden to avoid defeat against Poland in their final Group E match to ensure Ukraine would end as one of the best third place finishers in the group stage.
But with that result secured - Sweden held off a Robert Lewandowski-inspired fightback from Poland to win 3-2 - Yarmolenko says his team's thanks will end right there.
The West Ham United forward has been in fine form throughout the tournament - he has scored twice and set another up as Ukraine defeated North Macedonia and lost narrowly to the Netherlands and Austria - and he is fully focused on booking a quarter-final spot when they take on the Swedes.
"Of course, we wanted to continue our performance at the tournament," he explained when asked how he reacted to Sweden's result against Poland.
"Contradictory impressions remain, as we have not yet shown our maximum. We understood what result we needed last week. All the guys were worrying, while watching the Sweden match.
"I can express thanks to Sweden. Now we will meet them. We will try to play our football, show the maximum.
"This is a good team that plays aggressive football, they deservedly won their group. We are preparing for a good match. The strongest will win."
What a finish, @Yarmolenko_7! ??pic.twitter.com/nQiD4Ot4Hd
— West Ham United (@WestHam) June 13, 2021
Ukraine have already bettered their previous three European Championship appearances by progressing beyond the group phase, and Yarmolenko believes there is more to come from his side.
With an improvement in their performance when they take on Sweden in Glasgow, he is sure they can write some further history.
"The European Championship confirms that there are no weak teams now, and football in the world has levelled off," he explained. "Everyone can beat everyone.
"Yes, somewhere we were lucky in the group. We played badly with Austria. But let's move forward with positive thoughts and prepare for the next game."
