The national team coach was part of the France team that lost 2-1 to Bulgaria at the Parc des Princes in November 1993, a result that ended France's hopes of securing their berth at the 1994 World Cup under the stewardship of Gerard Houllier.
Deschamps would go on to captain France to World Cup glory on home soil in 1998, and they have qualified for each of the three tournaments since then - including 2006, when they finished runners-up to Italy.
"It may have been 20 years ago but it still sticks in my mind," he said. "I don't want to experience that again.
"We're playing two games in five days with no points at stake. Our goal is crystal clear - to qualify for the World Cup."
Manchester United full-back Patrice Evra is included in the squad despite a recent media outburst in which he labelled World Cup winner Bixente Lizarazu and three other commentators as "tramps".
But Fomenko is unperturbed by history as he looks to take his country to the World Cup for the first time since 2006.
"Only journalists and fans are speaking about those matches. My team try not to think about what happened before," he said.
Wingers Andriy Yarmolenko and Yevhen Konoplyanka are Ukraine's primary attacking threats, with the former having scored four times in the group stages.
