Giorgi Tsitaishvili was considered one of the main talents in the Dynamo system. He had the potential to become a leading player in the first team and move to a good club for big money. At 22, Gio is still very far from realising his talent.
Giorgi Tsitaishvili. Photo by Yurii YurievGio has been playing in Poland for a year and a half without much success. The Georgian's first team, Wisła Kraków, was relegated from the Ekstraklasa last season. This season, Tsitaishvili has played very little for Lech Poznan (he hasn't actually played in the second part of the season).
Despite the high-profile advances, this player has not been able to prove himself anywhere. Khatskevych and Mykhailychenko did not see him as a player for Dynamo's first team. There was a game practice in Odesa, but there was no breakthrough (1 goal in 12 matches). Now it's a complete fiasco in Poland. The top flight is a springboard for players to Europe. If you prove yourself, you go to a stronger club and championship. Gio lost the competition for a place in the squad, even though he was trusted in the first part of the season and Lech reached the quarter-finals of the Conference League, so he needed to rotate.
At 22, Tsitaishvili is frankly disappointing. Although he was given advances no less than Tsygankov, and he was hardly inferior to Mudryk or Khvicha in terms of talent. Gio has a lot in common with these players (position, strengths, age, anthropometry).
The Georgian's contract with Dynamo is valid until the summer of 2024. This summer, Kyiv's managers need to make a final decision on this player: either a new contract and a chance in the first team, or a final goodbye.
There are many factors that led Tsitaishvili to this state. When he was about to turn 18, he disappeared. As part of the Ukrainian youth national team, he complained of health problems and disappeared. In football, 18 is the age when the relationship with a club turns from amateur to professional. We immediately started talking about Shakhtar and Zenit. There are certain opportunities to steal a player at a transitional age. Of course, the club did everything to keep their talent and gave him a new and improved contract. Having not achieved anything in football yet, the player has already received almost everything. Add to that Gio's nationality and you get the full picture.
Another important factor is that Tsitaishvili does not know how to overcome difficulties. In the summer, he suspended his contract with Dynamo and went to Poland. Of course, it was easier that way. In Lucescu, I had to sit on the bench, study, fulfil the coach's requirements, win the competition, wait for my chance when Tsygankov left, while in Poland, the agents promised everything at once. Why suffer? It's the same with the national team - it's very difficult to get into the Ukrainian national team, you need to win competitions, prove yourself at the club level, and in Georgia you will almost always be called up because the country is not big and, accordingly, the choice of players is limited. It is unlikely that the Ukrainian national team will be called up from the ExtraClass (the situation with Kochergin, who plays well for Rakuv), but for Georgia - no problem.
Mudryk or Khvicha overcame many problems before getting to the big clubs. None of them had it easy. But Tsitaishvili has no strong-willed qualities. This is not only Gio's problem, but also the problem of many other talented Georgians - Arabidze, Ananidze, Chekvertadze. The latter was given huge advances and expected a lot at Ghent, but at the age of 23 he is playing in the Slovakian championship for Slovan. And he hardly plays in Bratislava... All of these guys believed that they could do everything, knew everything, had enough talent to play at the highest level. But they did not want to learn, to change...
There is hope that Andriy Yarmolenko will return to Dynamo in the summer. In this case, Tsitaishvili's prospects for the next 2 years will not look quite convincing. He will not have a place in Kyiv again. Lucescu wants to work one more season. There are hopes for Nazar Voloshyn's progress and confidence in Samba Diallo. Vladyslav Kalyn and Kyrylo Pashko are growing up there. There is not much room for Tsitaishvili.
I categorically do not believe that after his performances in Poland there will be any interest from European teams. There are no prerequisites. Even with the possibility of a contract suspension. Rather, a return to Ukraine and a further loan to Zorya (especially if there are European Cups), Kryvbas (Vernydub could try to reach out to the player), Polissia with the expectation that Dynamo will have a coach who sees Gio's potential.
Serhiy Tyshchenko
