Former Dynamo Kyiv coach Jozsef Szabo has assessed the prospects of Oleksandr Shovkovskyi, who has recently been appointed acting head coach of the White and Blues.
Jozsef Szabo- Jožef Jožefović, were you surprised that Shovkovskyi was appointed acting head coach of Dynamo?
- I've already said that maybe it's too early for him. I'm afraid that he might be thrown under the bus. Sasha could use some more training from good coaches. But he already has experience, he helped Shevchenko and Petrakov in the national team, and now he is helping Lucescu at Dynamo. But I don't know how he will do as a head coach.
I think he will get on with the players, they will listen to him. But, again, it all depends on the players' capabilities. Nowadays, Dynamo doesn't have any great players. The only thing that makes me happy is that Dynamo played very well against Shakhtar. I didn't recognise the Donetsk team at all. Maybe Jovicevic gave them a lot of workload.
"Dynamo can compete for bronze with Zorya, they are unlikely to take the first two places from Shakhtar and Dnipro-1. If Kyiv play the rest of the season like they did against Shakhtar, they will definitely win bronze.
- Do you think a goalkeeper can become a strong head coach?
- I can't say. Anything is possible. Let's see. I wish Shovkovskyi only success and want him to succeed.
- Why didn't Shovkovskyi become a goalkeeping coach?
- He probably felt that he could be a head coach.
- Can Shovkovskyi give Dynamo a new impetus?
- In any case, Kyiv will play this season on Lucescu's baggage, because the end of the championship is coming soon and the players cannot be overworked. Here, Shovkovskyi must show his skills as a coach and know what kind of training to give. Also, the game discipline must be at a high level, and I think Shovkovskyi will be able to provide this. He has never had any problems with discipline. He did not drink, did not go out and did not break the regime.
- Do you think Shovkovskyi will become a full-fledged Dynamo coach in the summer or will Lucescu return to his post after the operation and finalise his contract until 2024?
- This is a difficult question. Lucescu has a similar operation to mine, I once had my hip joint replaced. There is nothing wrong with it, you can return to work after the operation. Another question is whether he wants to do it himself.
- And what if Lucescu wants to stay, but Shovkovsky gives results, what should he do then?
- Then Lucescu will have to show diplomacy. If he sees that Shovkovsky has managed to achieve results and put things in order in the team, then Lucescu should leave himself.
- In your opinion, why did Surkis entrust the position of interim coach to Shovkovskyi rather than Gusev, who has been working as Lucescu's assistant for much longer?
- I am not surprised at all! The fact is that Gusev is even more modest than Shovkovsky, he is generally quiet, he has never been heard. He can't be a head coach, because you need character and communication skills. And Shovkovsky has it to a greater extent. I am sure that if Lucescu leaves, Shovkovskyi will become the head coach, even if he does not show results this season. Dynamo's management is committed to Shovkovskyi.
- What advice do you have for Shovkovskyi?
- He needs to work on different tactics. Lucescu constantly played from the defence. I think Sashko will succeed, he's not a stupid guy.
- Shovkovskyi played 111 matches under you at Dynamo, he played more only under Lobanovskyi - 164. How did you recognise his talent?
- I took Shovkovskyi from Dynamo-3 to the first team. He missed an easy ball while playing for the second team in the first league, and he was sent to the third team. I was just forming Dynamo's squad at the time, I liked Shovkovskyi, and I took him to my team.
- How did he impress you?
- He is a smart and thinking guy. I like this type of player.
- What was Shovkovskyi like as a person when you were in charge of Dynamo?
- He is quiet and modest, he never put himself above the team. Besides, Shovkovskyi always trained hard, Mykhailov coached him well. Sashko was a very good goalkeeper and person.
I don't remember him quarreling with anyone, raising his voice, shoving someone. Sasha could only give a friendly suggestion. He was a great footballer, he grew into the main goalkeeper of Dynamo and the national team. I can't say anything bad about him.
- Will his excessive modesty play a cruel joke on him as a head coach, where sometimes you need to be tough?
- Yes, there may be a problem here. He lacks toughness. We'll see how it goes. I hope he will succeed.
- Shovkovskyi, in addition to many top matches, had some failures. I immediately recall the Slovenian goal against Ukraine scored by Achimovic almost from the centre of the pitch. What did you say to Shovkovskyi after the match and how did he react?
- I didn't say anything at all and I never reminded him of that moment. I saw that Shovkovskyi was very worried about it and I had to support him.
- Have you ever criticised Shovkovsky?
- That's the thing, no! I never had any complaints about him at all. I never insulted the players at all, as some people write, but I could raise my voice.
I remember when we were losing to Spartak after the first half - 0-2. We went into the dressing room, I sat everyone down, calmed the players down and said: "Guys, you're playing great, just don't make any mistakes in the second half and we'll win the game." The team listened, and we scored three goals and won 3-2.
I raised my voice, but I didn't hurt the players - I didn't call them 'sh*t'.
- Shovkovskyi was number one under almost all Dynamo coaches, and only Yurii Semin firmly put him on the bench, entrusting his place in the side to Bohush. Why do you think this happened, because after Semin left, Shovkovskyi returned to the team?
- I don't know, Shovkovskyi was definitely better as a goalkeeper. Perhaps the team lost and Shovkovskyi pointed out Semin's mistakes. And that was it! After that, you fall in the eyes of the head coach.
- Shovkovskyi also had a conflict with Mykhailychenko. In his autobiography, Oleksandr said that Mykhailychenko gave him a huge fine for being late for the training ground, even though he arrived a few minutes earlier than the agreed time. What do you think happened in this situation and whose side are you on?
- I don't believe that Shovkovskyi could have violated the regime, I've never seen him do that! Why didn't Mykhailychenko like him? It happens that coaches catch a star and it is difficult for players to work with them. Sometimes coaches lock the players in the base, not allowing them to talk to anyone. Perhaps Mykhailychenko did not like the fact that Shovkovskyi had a high authority in the team.
We can only speculate, and I don't know what really happened between them.
- You had Shevchenko and Rebrov playing for Dynamo, who achieved some success in the coaching field, and now Shovkovskyi is trying on the role of head coach. If you choose from these three, which of them did you see as a coach at the time?
- Rebrova. He is a very competent and intelligent guy, he was fond of radio sports. I even had some Dynamo players come to me to ask me to ban Rebrov from radio, saying that he was staying up late with the radio at the base. But I didn't ban him, he didn't bother anyone. I had no complaints about Rebrov, nor about Shovkovsky.
- You said that Leonenko had a bad influence on Shevchenko, got him hooked on cigarettes. Did Leonenko have any influence on Shovkovsky?
- No, Shovkovsky did not fall for his "tricks". The only one whom Leonenko managed to get his hands on was Shevchenko. But, thank God, we quickly managed to wrest him from Leonenko's grasp. Igor Mikhailovich Surkis, to whom I turned when I learned what was happening, helped us a lot. It was not for nothing that Shevchenko's father said: "Andriusha, you should erect a monument to Sabo during his lifetime!"
Andriy Piskun
