Well-known Ukrainian coach and expert Oleg Fedorchuk shared his impressions of the return match of the 2nd qualifying round of the Champions League between Turkish Fenerbahce and Kyiv "Dynamo" (1:2), which took place last Wednesday in Istanbul.
Oleg Fedorchuk"Verbic fell out even before the microtrauma"
‒ What does the fact that Mircea Lucescu did not change the composition testify to?
- Firstly, that he is satisfied with the result of the first meeting. Even despite the 0:0 in a nominally home game. Secondly, that Lucescu has decided on the basis and believes that it is she who can give the best result.
‒ You said you are satisfied with the result. But what about the zero shots on target in the first match and the unintelligible game of several players at once?
- As they say, he has no other players - these are the best. Although there were questions about the game of some guys, you need to take into account the lack of practice in official matches and, as a result, the unpredictability of the form. So, as a realist coach, he tried to squeeze the maximum out of the available players.
‒ Serious panic in the interval of 20-25 minutes - what is it connected with?
- Judging by the whole game, the strategy of the Turks was such as to decide the outcome already in the opening of the match. Some of our players could not keep up with the pace offered by Fenerbahce. We were forced to slow down the pace, fouled, made mistakes - yes, and that was it. It’s very, very good that at the same time we were lucky not to miss those moments, although what is worth only a free kick to the post and several well-played moments.
‒ Three halves without goals - is it natural for this confrontation?
- Regarding Dynamo, yes, naturally. Moreover, even in the first half it was clear that Besedin's game did not go well. He played much less productively than in Lodz. Verbic dropped out of the game even before the microtrauma, there were questions about his involvement in the team's game.
And although Fener created more chances, he also did not finish the game. Valencia lacked focus on the goal with tenacity and cunning.
‒ Vanata as a winger, do you understand?
‒ This is both a forced replacement and Vlad's way out. Agree, if De Pena were in place, he would rather play. The fact that in the second half Garmash was placed on the left flank, and Vanat returned to the center, confirms that Mircea sees him as a central striker. He has a flair, the ability to quickly navigate someone else's penalty area.
"Yuksek and Popov should be offended by themselves, not by the referee"
‒ Whatever one may say, we will talk about the removal of Ismail Yuksek - after all, the goal happened immediately after three minutes. Is this a direct consequence of Fenerbahce's minority?
- The goal itself was well played and was not an accident. But it cannot be disputed that after the removal of Yuksek, the hosts did not have time to rebuild, and somewhere when the ball was delivered to the right flank of Kendzere, the absence of Ismail directly affected the combination.
‒ Goal with the first shot on target in two and a half hours is strong. Happy Dynamo?
- They worked for this result and deserved that this goal mattered with their work. The combination was played not "ball", but full-fledged. If in the previous match Kendzera played less brightly than Dubinchak, now it was his connection and a successful cross that decided the outcome of the moment.
‒ Buyalsky was "silent" for three halves to score such an important match. What is Vitaly's specialty for the current Dynamo?
‒ He is good at playing with the second pace, in connections from the depth. He has a bomber flair. Here Besedin opens worse than Vanat and Buyalsky. In the moment with Kendzera's pass, Vitaliy very successfully connected to this combination, so he was at the right time in the right place.
Here we must pay tribute to Lucescu, who saw how Buyalsky “dissolved” in the game in the first match and, nevertheless, believed in him and was rewarded.
‒ Removal, penalties, scattering of cards... Do you have any questions about refereeing Irrati?
- Not. He judged what he saw, and made the right decisions at key moments. Just as Yuksek should be offended only at himself for sending off, so should Popov at a penalty.
And the abundance of cards is easy to explain - both teams are still rolling into the season, they are far from their optimal form, a lot does not work out. And the difference between what they can and what they do leads to nervousness, belated decisions and fouls.
‒ Buschan parried a penalty from an experienced Valencia. Did you believe?
- Yes. There was such a feeling before the impact. Georgy did not let himself be caught on the counter move, the way he played with his feet shows that he controlled the flight of the ball and guessed the intention of the puncher.
‒ Why then such a stupid error in the output?
- Yes she was. But you can ask exactly the same from field players who didn’t notice the elephant - Salai seems to be the tallest on the field, and Sidorchuk and Zabarny didn’t keep their distance with him.
Pestilence is a vivid illustration of personnel confusion in Fener
‒ Not everything was good for Fenerbahce either: Mora's reverse substitution, moments when Vanat, Zabarny found themselves in lethal positions...
- These are the problems of the new coach. We do not yet know how much Jesus overestimated the composition of Fener. Serdar was his top scorer last season - now he starts on the bench. The same is the skillful Portuguese Bruma, a technical and resourceful player. With his sharpness, he would play full games.
Emre Mor is a vivid illustration of the personnel confusion in Fener. A gifted guy, we remember how in his youth he “carried” the Ukrainian national team under Shevchenko. Now he came out, completely unprepared, he was blown away very quickly and was replaced - if Jesus had worked a little longer, either Emre would have been on pace, or he would not have been in this team.
- For Fener, this is the beginning of the season, and what can we say about Dynamo, which has not seen official matches for almost nine months. Was the prospect of 120 minutes intimidating? Did the teams survive them?
‒ On the whole, quite. In terms of physics, the teams liked it, and the new substitution limits helped the coaches keep up the pace.
‒ Did the replacements correspond to real needs?
- Yes. Definitely. I especially liked Lucescu's substitutions.
Garmash, paradoxically, calmed down the game - even despite the outburst of emotions with the squabble with the referee. On the left flank, he was located sideways, was imprisoned for throwing from the right foot - this often created inconvenience for the defense of Fener. The second goal is largely the merit of just such a game by Garmash, who connected Vivcharenko in time, who assisted Karavaev. All three people are off the bench. What else needs to be said?
I liked the work that Shepelev did - if he was lucky in a couple of moments, he would also take part in scoring combinations. Vanat, I repeat, is able to progress this season in such a way as to become the main one. Well, Karavaev is a very stable player in his own way, where you don’t put it, when you don’t release it, he does his job.
“In the second goal, all three defendants are players from the bench. What questions about Dynamo substitutions?”
‒ Goal against his former team under such circumstances is a real dream. How did Karavaev manage to achieve this?
‒ In general, even during charity international matches, he liked his speed and involvement in the game. Here Karavaev also entered very well. I felt the pace of the attack and connected well to it.
- On the one hand, two and a half matches without shots on target. On the other hand, a blow to the frame from Zabarny, gorgeous moments of Tsygankov and Vanat. What did Lucescu manage to change in order to achieve such a pleasant activation?
- First of all, of course, the situation in the numerical majority worked. Secondly, Fener was pressured by the factor of his field. The score forced them to open up in front of their fans, but for Dynamo, this was all that was needed.
Of course, we cannot be captive to illusions - it was a difficult battle won through diligence, patience and dedication. The total statistics of the two matches shows an abyss in the number of shots, attacks, xG. So we must continue not to deviate from the extremely careful implementation of coaching tactics.
Otherwise, it will be a shame, having passed such a high-class opponent as Fenerbahce, to fly out from Sturm.
‒ With such a squad, Lucescu can once again take Dynamo to the Champions League group stage. Is it time to recognize his merits even to skeptics?
‒ Dynamo had moments with former coaches when, in terms of the high cost of the squad, the level of salaries and general experience, the team clearly underperformed and flew out even from obviously weaker rivals. Now Lucescu is squeezing 146% out of this squad.
This is Lucescu's outstanding coaching work. But, I repeat, Dynamo has weaknesses, vulnerable positions, so the matches with Sturm should be treated with all caution.
