Oleksii Bielik is Shakhtar U21 head coach
Monday, June 29, 2026
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Introducing the manager and coaching staff of Shakhtar youth team
Shakhtar U21 will be led into the 2026/27 season by 45-year-old head coach Oleksii Bielik.
A product of Donetsk football, Bielik spent much of his playing career with Shakhtar, winning three Ukrainian league titles and two Ukrainian Cups. He also played for Shakhtar-2, Germany's Bochum, Dnipro and Metalurh Zaporizhzhia. Oleksii Bielik played for Ukraine’s youth, U21 and senior national teams.
He began his coaching career at the club's Academy in 2021 as assistant head coach of Shakhtar U15 before moving on to become assistant of Shakhtar U19. In 2023, he took charge of the youth team, with whom he won silver medals in the league, before claiming the title in the 2025/26 season.
The Orange-and-Blacks' coaching staff also includes assistant head coach Oleksii Hai, goalkeeping coach Artem Tetenko and fitness coach Dmytro Korniienko.
Oleksii Bielik, Shakhtar U21 head coach:
– I have only positive emotions about the appointment and the opportunity to work at my favourite club where I practically grew up as a player and where I began my coaching career – from working as an assistant at Shakhtar U15 to becoming the head coach of the U21 team. We have a coaching staff in place, and given that we know each other well, we will need minimum time to adapt. At the stage of the youth championship’s revival, it is difficult to determine the level of competition at the moment, but our main focus is on developing young footballers. The U21 Championship will be a great opportunity for them to gain experience playing against senior opponents. At the same time, we are aiming for a positive result in every match and will do our utmost to achieve it.
A product of Donetsk football, Bielik spent much of his playing career with Shakhtar, winning three Ukrainian league titles and two Ukrainian Cups. He also played for Shakhtar-2, Germany's Bochum, Dnipro and Metalurh Zaporizhzhia. Oleksii Bielik played for Ukraine’s youth, U21 and senior national teams.
He began his coaching career at the club's Academy in 2021 as assistant head coach of Shakhtar U15 before moving on to become assistant of Shakhtar U19. In 2023, he took charge of the youth team, with whom he won silver medals in the league, before claiming the title in the 2025/26 season.
The Orange-and-Blacks' coaching staff also includes assistant head coach Oleksii Hai, goalkeeping coach Artem Tetenko and fitness coach Dmytro Korniienko.
Oleksii Bielik, Shakhtar U21 head coach:
– I have only positive emotions about the appointment and the opportunity to work at my favourite club where I practically grew up as a player and where I began my coaching career – from working as an assistant at Shakhtar U15 to becoming the head coach of the U21 team. We have a coaching staff in place, and given that we know each other well, we will need minimum time to adapt. At the stage of the youth championship’s revival, it is difficult to determine the level of competition at the moment, but our main focus is on developing young footballers. The U21 Championship will be a great opportunity for them to gain experience playing against senior opponents. At the same time, we are aiming for a positive result in every match and will do our utmost to achieve it.
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