Transfer Centre

Ukrainians in the Premier League

By Liam Apicella, Features Editor | 29 January 2014

As speculation links Yevhen Konoplyanka with a move to Liverpool, Sports Mole looks at how Ukrainian footballers have fared in the Premier League.

Recent reports have suggested that Liverpool are closing in on the signing of Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk winger Yevhen Konoplyanka.

Should the transfer be finalised before Friday evening's deadline, the 24-year-old will become the sixth Ukrainian to have plied his trade in the Premier League.

So, ahead of that proposed transfer, Sports Mole has looked back on how Konoplyanka's five countrymen fared on English shores.

1. Oleksandr Yevtushok, Coventry City
With time running out and Coventry City's status as a Premier League side looking precarious, Gordon Strachan turned to eight-time Ukraine international Yevtushok in 1997. His short spell at Highfield Road was hardly a memorable one, as he featured in heavy losses to Manchester United and Newcastle United. However, during his final outing against Tottenham Hotspur, the Sky Blues ensured that they would be playing top-flight football next term, although the defender wouldn't be. He was released and returned home with Arsenal Kyiv.

2. Oleg Luzhny, Arsenal & Wolverhampton Wanderers
A serial Ukrainian title winner with Dynamo Kyiv, Arsene Wenger signed the full-back to act as cover for Lee Dixon. He arrived with the nickname 'The Horse' for his galloping surges down the right flank, but translations have since claimed that the translation was indeed 'The Moose'. Either way, he rarely had more than a bit-part role with the Gunners, often playing second fiddle to Dixon and Lauren. Nevertheless, he still has a Premier League title and one FA Cup medal to show for his time with the club, although he will want to forget the personal nadir that was the 6-1 defeat at Man United. A switch to newly-promoted Wolverhampton Wanderers was sealed in 2003, but he made just 10 appearances before being released 12 months later.

Oleg Luzhny attempts to win possession from Kevin Campbell on November 18, 2000. © Getty Images

3. Sergei Rebrov, Tottenham Hotspur
As one half of Dynamo Kyiv's dynamic striking duo of the late 1990s, Rebrov was said to have been courted by a number of clubs. Spurs won the race in the summer of 2000, shelling out £11m. However, he struggled to adapt to life in England and when George Graham was sacked in March 2001, being replaced by Glenn Hoddle, Rebrov was frozen out at White Hart Lane. He was loaned out to Fenerbahce, before joining West Ham United in the Championship having scored 15 goals in a Spurs shirt.

Sergei Rebrov celebrates scoring for Tottenham Hotspur on December 15, 2001. © Getty Images

4. Andriy Shevchenko, Chelsea
Rebrov's partner in crime arrived on English shores via AC Milan in 2006 for a £30m fee. Soon after, rumours surfaced that he was not Jose Mourinho's choice, more a signing of owner Roman Abramovich. It would be the former of that duo, who preferred Samuel Eto'o, that would be proved correct. Like Rebrov, it seemed that Shevchenko could not contend with the pace of the Premier League. He scored goals sporadically - 22 in total - and then was loaned back to Milan two years after he had first appeared at Stamford Bridge. Meanwhile, Eto'o won titles, including the Champions League, with Barcelona.

5. Andriy Voronin, Liverpool
Signed on a free transfer in 2007 following a spell in Germany with Bayer Leverkusen, Voronin was never going to be anything else other than back-up to Fernando Torres. To be fair to the pony-tailed striker he started well enough at Anfield, but injuries and a loss of form resulted in him being farmed out on loan to Hertha BSC for the 2008-09 campaign. He returned to Merseyside to make 10 more appearances, but was then sold to Dynamo Moscow for £4m in January 2010. In total, Voronin scored six goals for the Reds.