Credit: Imago

Max Wilkins

Fri 27 March 2026 8:40, UK

Everton defender Vitaliy Mykolenko has seen his dreams of playing in a World Cup crushed.

The left-back departed Merseyside for the March international break knowing that his side needed to beat Sweden to keep their dream alive.

A win would set up a straight shootout for a place at the summer tournament against Poland or Albania on Tuesday.

The Swedes will now line up against Poland in a qualification final, after dumping Sergiy Rebrov’s side out with a 3-1 win.

Ukraine may have tasted defeat against Sweden, but the Toffees can be proud of the performance that Mykolenko put in.

Everton ace Vitaliy Mykolenko shines in Ukraine defeat vs Sweden

The 26-year-old hasn’t always been the most popular figure among supporters on Merseyside, but has maintained the backing of David Moyes.

He has been a virtual ever-present in the Premier League, and there was simply no doubt that he would earn an international call-up for such a massive fixture.

Two games lie ahead of Ukraine with the chance of earning a spot at the World Cup, but that was dashed as Arsenal’s Viktor Gyokeres netted a hat-trick.

Conceding three may not be the best look, but Mykolenko still put in a positive shift, and his stats point towards a solid showcase.

The Everton man took 106 touches and was able to maintain 100 per cent of his attempted dribbles, while also completing 52 passes.

He helped get his side moving with 10 of those being into the final third, as he also chipped in with eight attempted crosses and two accurate long balls.

That was all helped by eight duel wins and five defensive actions, although it wasn’t enough to seal an all-important victory on Thursday.

Mykolenko has proved many people wrong at Everton this season, and this latest showing is just another plus point to his performance levels in L4.

Mykolenko wasn’t happy with “shameful” performance vs Sweden

The stats may point towards a positive performance from the defender, but he wasn’t as happy with what he saw at Estadio Ciudad de Valencia.

After the defeat, he described his side’s performance as “shameful” and apologised to supporters for what they had endured.

The Everton man can’t take all that blame on his shoulders, but it does prove his character to come out with such stern words after a massive defeat.

It wasn’t an ideal night for Mykolenko, but it looks as if he can hold his head up high, even if the result has knocked him back.