Oleksandr Ishchenko, the director of Dynamo Kyiv FC, on Valery Lobanovskyi's memorial day, spoke about the significance of the famous coach's personality for the club.
— Oleksandr Oleksiiovych, with what feelings do you come every year to the monument of Valery Lobanovskyi on the day of his memory?
— On the one hand, it is a sense of pride that I had the opportunity to work with him and play against each other, leading different teams, and to be in the coaching council led by Valery Vasyliovych. The legacy he left is in demand and relevant to this day. Lobanovsky was far ahead of his time. He gave a great impetus to the development of not only Ukrainian, but also the entire world football.
On the other hand, we all feel the pain of loss, because Valery Vasyliovych left us very early. This is probably the fate of many great people who burned brightly during their lives to light the way for others. Many leading European coaches remember him, bow to his works and, without being shy, say that they have learned a lot from him regarding the development, progress of football and completely different views on the organization and conduct of the educational and training process, the organization of the game, selection football players His name really entered the history of world football in golden letters. It is not for nothing that he is among the top 10 football coaches of all time.
— DYUFSH "Dynamo" is named after Valery Lobanovskyi. What does this mean for the pupils of the school, how do they perceive it?
— It is mandatory that we tell the children who Valery Vasyliovych was — not only a great coach and a gifted football player, but also a very educated person. We must prepare children not only for a football career, but also for life, so that they are worthy citizens of their country.
For our club, for the children's school, his name is a visiting card with which we proudly come to any country, any club where we are welcomed hospitably. In my memory, there has never been such a visit when we met with the management of any club, football academy, and Valery Lobanovskyi's name was not mentioned.