SI.com Home
France Ligue 1
Scoreboard | Match Schedule | Standings | Clubs | Transfers | Player Leaders | Home

Ukraine coach hospitalized, to miss qualifier

KIEV, Ukraine (AP) Ukraine coach Oleh Blokhin has had surgery to remove a blood clot from a carotid artery and is expected to miss his team's World Cup qualifying match in Moldova on Friday.

The Ukrainian soccer federation says assistant coach Andriy Bal will take over in Blokhin's absence.

Blokhin has said he will step down as national team coach after the Oct. 16 World Cup qualifier against Montenegro. Last month, he was appointed coach of Dynamo Kiev, where he played throughout his career in the 1970s and `80s.

Mykhailo Radutsky, the chief doctor at the clinic where Blokhin was treated, says the surgery was successful but it's too early to say when he will be released.

Updated October 8, 2012

w4 © 2013 by STATS LLC and Associated Press.
Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and Associated Press is strictly prohibited.

ADVERTISEMENT
SI.com
TM & © 2013 Time Inc. A Time Warner Company. All Rights Reserved. SI.com is part of CNN Digital Network, which is part of the Turner Digital Network. Terms under which this service is provided to you. Read our privacy guidelines, your California privacy rights, and ad choices.