Today, 13 May, marks the 21st anniversary of the death of the legendary player and coach of Dynamo Kyiv, Valeriy Lobanovsky.
Photo: fcdynamo.comIronically, the legendary Meter, whose name embodies Dynamo football, died on the day the club was founded, whose glorious history he wrote for many decades, first as a player and then as an innovative coach, creating several "golden" teams of different generations that made a splash throughout Europe.
On this day, football fans from Ukraine and beyond remember Valery Vasilyevich. Under martial law in Ukraine, the traditional rally in memory of Valery Lobanovsky is not held for security reasons. Nevertheless, on this day, there are, as always, a lot of flowers at the monument to the Meter. People have been coming to the monument at Baikove Cemetery and the monument near the stadium since early morning. These are both those who knew Meter personally and those who admired Dynamo's successes in the stadium stands or on TV.
As always, the closest among them is Valeriy Vasilyevich's daughter Svetlana, who is a faithful keeper of the outstanding coach's memory. Close people who knew Valeriy Vasylovych personally traditionally come to the grave at Baikove cemetery to remember in silence what an outstanding person Valeriy Vasylovych was.
More people traditionally gather at the monument to Valeriy Lobanovsky, located in the very centre of Kyiv. Especially since it was the day Dynamo played their home match at the legendary stadium named after the Meter. In the morning, people of completely different generations could be seen here - both the youngest students of the Dynamo Academy, who are gaining their first victories with the Dynamo emblem on their hearts, and honoured football veterans. The mission of telling Dynamo students about the coach's outstanding achievements was undertaken by the well-known journalist Oleksandr Lypenko, who for many years followed the achievements of Dynamo under the Masters' leadership.
The image of Valeriy Lobanovsky is an example of selfless service to his cause, to which he gave all of himself without a trace. Not only his titles and achievements speak for him, but also the boundless love of his successors and his legacy, which is still enjoyed in the football world. Valeriy Lobanovskiy's fond memory will always live on among those who have the letter "D" engraved on their hearts.
