Well-known Ukrainian coach and expert Oleg Fedorchuk shared his impressions of the first playoff match of the Europa League qualification round between Dnipro-1 and Cypriot AEK (1:2), which took place last Thursday in Kosice.
Oleg Fedorchuk- If it were not for Dnipro's goal at the last minute, then the sensations would be sad. It was very annoying to follow the team, in this case, Dnipro-1, which is higher than the opponent in terms of potential, but the picture on the field was completely different.
I think that in the first half, the Dnipro team had some kind of misalignment, the team played a positional game, while being fond of short and medium strands. There was also a lot of individual play. But I liked the opponent. Despite the fact that AEK is a fairly old team, they carried out very fast counterattacks and could have scored more in the first half. Dnepr-1 lost the first half of the game completely, the statistics clearly showed this. I think that the coaching staff should set up better players.
In the second one, Dnipro-1 already had an advantage, it’s another matter that the Cypriots were slowing down. In any case, the ending of the game is not hopeless, and we have every chance to pass AEK.
- Are the goals conceded mainly due to the lack of teamwork of the current Dnipro squad or, to a greater extent, the result of the opponent's skill?
- Both. We saw that AEK delivered a lot of shots to our goals, especially from the support zone. Our players played very widely, while Sarapiy looked very bad in this position - he was nervous, and the red card received at the end of the game is quite logical. The footballer did not always succeed, and given that both Svatok and Adamyuk are not ultra-fast players, the picture did not come out very well, because these footballers were focused on attack and often left the zones.
Also, Kogut, Tanchik from Busanello did not look very good. Plus, it was impossible not to notice how nervous the Dnipro goalkeeper was, the second ball was entirely on him, a gross goalkeeper's mistake. Two goals in 30 minutes - it was a shock in which the team spent the entire first half, some players simply "burned out".
- From the side, did you get the feeling that, with flank crosses with crosses, the Dnipro-1 players in their penalty area simply did not understand what they needed to do?
- I completely agree. Moreover, there was no connection between the middle line and the attacking group, where, by and large, there was one Dovbik. Although in the second half Gromov had very good chances, with the same crossbar. The 4-1-4-1 scheme did not work in the first half, and already in the second, when Gromov came out and started playing two forwards, many chances were created.
Well, I would like to see a more aggressive game from Dovbik. Today, he, like Pikhalonok, is a player of the national team. Moreover, there was talk around Dovbik about his value of several tens of millions, but against the background of the Cypriot team, he did not show much activity.
- Doesn't it seem that all this transfer hype around Artem does not have a very good effect on him?
- I think that this wave is more away from a successful game in the national team, because the player is watched not only in his performances for the club. Moreover, there was a big break in the championship, and all the excitement came from playing for the national team.
In any case, this game with AEK Dovbik is definitely not a plus, you need to position yourself more aggressively. He definitely knows how to play, but at the same time he does not always get into the game well. This is also minus Artem.
In any case, we need to seriously prepare, the potential of Dnipro-1 is enough, we need to look for blocks of teamwork. Yes, there was too little time to play, but, however, there are footballers in the team who played together - the same connections Nazarenko-Dovbik, Kogut-Dovbyk, Pikhalonok-Dovbyk. But except for the last minute, when Pikhalyonok served well to Svatok, and he scored, we did not notice any connections.
- Sarapiy misses the next game, is this a serious loss?
- Judging by the fact that he was in the starting lineup, they counted on him. The loss, of course, is significant, but, on the other hand, Sarapiy is not a pure defensive player, he played much more in his career as a defender. So they will probably find a replacement.
But the Dnipros need to add not in the back line, at least not without it. Here more needs to be added to the attack group. And at the same time, start the way Dnipro-1 ended the game - get rid of the ball faster, making quick attacks.
After all, what did AEK like? They finished each attack with a blow, inflicting only about 20 shots towards the goal - a very high figure for such a team. Dnipro-1 needs to return to the style that was in the second half - speed, compactness, because they played very widely in defense, and the opponent easily opened it, several attacks were one on one, the defenders at the last moment managed to kick the ball in the tackle . I think the coaching staff will analyze everything and draw the necessary conclusions.
- Is Alexander Kucher's handwriting already visible?
- Both Dnipro-1 and Metalist - these teams have always preferred to play with ball control. In principle, football players are sharpened for this.
At the same time, the team must have a style, while the tactics of the game must be based on the capabilities of the opponent. If he is old, it is clear that at the end of the first half the players have already begun to sit down, then you need to turn on the pace, there should be an arrhythmia. And her "Dnepr-1" was just not enough. It seemed that the team played correctly, but it did not bring any sharpness, especially at the beginning of the game, the opponent managed to close the zones.
With such fugitive strikers as Gromov and Dovbik, Dnipro-1 is not worth playing slow football. We must use the trump cards of our players. And you can't rely only on the flanks. No matter how well the players play there, goals are scored not from the flanks, but from the center of the penalty area.
Evgeny Savchuk
