Ex-midfielder of Dynamo Kyiv Oleksandr Aliev shared his impressions of the first match of his former team against Austrian Sturm (1:0) in the 3rd qualifying round of the Champions League.
Alexander Aliev- Alexander, how do you like the game performed by Dynamo?
- Well done. The most important thing is victory. But while only one half has been played, there is still a second half to come. It will be even harder.
- Did Mircea Lucescu surprise you with the squad?
- Not. Unless Tsygankov was injured during the warm-up, otherwise this line-up was to be expected. But Karavaev came out and scored a goal. Well done, scoring the second game in a row.
- Can we say that the mentor of Kiev guessed right with a forced replacement?
- It was clear that Karavaev had to leave. Even when he does not get into the main team, he usually comes on as a substitute. The head coach is constantly with the team, he sees and knows who is in what condition.
- Is the departure of Benjamin Verbic a big loss for Dynamo?
— I never discuss anyone personally. I didn't understand why he left. Of course, there is a war going on in our country, but it's hard for me to say something about his decision.
- Did Dynamo surprise you with functional preparation today, especially after a hard 120 minutes in Istanbul?
— The boys have recovered. They passed the training camp, physically prepared well. They deserved to win today. Of course, I wanted to score one more goal. But the game will be forgotten, but the result will remain. The most important thing is that today we got a positive result.
- After today's victory, Dynamo became the favorite of the confrontation before the second leg?
- All teams are equal here. Today, although there was a home game for Dynamo, in fact the guys played away. I believe that even after today's victory, the chances of passing are 50/50. In Austria, Dynamo will be much harder. Let's hope the team goes further.
Andrey Kaplun
