Last week, the main focus of the national sports media was on the events in the Ukrainian Premier League, after which the issue of determining the future champion narrowed but became even more complicated.
Photo by Yuriy YurievThere will be a new champion
The Ukrainian Premier League is entering the home stretch, but there is still a long way to go in terms of clarity on all tournament issues. There are four rounds left to play before the end of the season. There is intrigue in almost every section of the table that has at least the slightest meaningful load. But the most exciting and fierce fight will be for the championship.
The media can't even remember when, five game days before the end, three teams actually claimed first place, and theoretically, even four. And the next round, according to press estimates and forecasts, was not expected to make any significant adjustments to this issue. After all, the quartet of leaders faced opponents from the bottom of the table and had no special chances, at least on paper.
However, the media paid special attention to Chornomorets, who went to visit Dynamo. Roman Hryhorchuk's team in the second part of the championship does not correspond to its status as a fighter for survival, showing extremely interesting football. Odesa have already taken points away from Shakhtar and lost to Dnipro-1 due to some controversial decisions by the referee, turning into a real thunderstorm of authority.
"Shakhtarplay bold football even against the leaders. They pressed Zorya and SC Dnipro-1 one-on-one all over the pitch, and Shakhtar had a tough time in Odesa - in fact, the Pitmen failed to win there. The Pitmen's chances creation and execution is also in order: In April, Chornomorets managed to score three goals against Kryvbas and Kolos, which are among the best defences in the UPL.Inshort, Odesa are very dangerous for the current Dynamo," warned the capital's club to Football24.ua (13.05.23).
"By the way,if Dynamo draws with Chornomorets and Shakhtar defeats Ingulets, Kyiv will finally lose all chances of winning gold, even the most illusory ones, 4 rounds before the finishline.Therefore, it is the Dynamo vs Chornomorets match that can be seen as the central match in round 26.We would also like to remind you that theKyiv team holds the last title of the Ukrainian champion in chronologicalorder," Terrikon.com also reminded the day before (13.05.23).
It was as if the publication was jinxed...
It seemed that the White and Blues would have no problems. They gained a powerful momentum after the change on the coaching bench. Although, it should not be said that the arrival of Oleksandr Shovkovskyi influenced the results of Kyiv - the specialist himself says that he is constantly in contact with Mircea Lucescu. Nevertheless, the trend for Dynamo was positive: they won three matches under the guidance of the outstanding Ukrainian goalkeeper.
The last two victories turned out to be very difficult, when Kyiv sometimes had to not only attack but also suffer in defence. In addition, in the match against Kryvbas last Monday, the capital's team managed not to concede for the first time since 8 April.
But despite all these facts, Chornomorets opened the most intriguing confrontation of the last football weekend with two quick goals that almost determined the outcome at the start of the match. Dynamo found the strength to make a comeback, but still failed, wasting resources in the pursuit of correcting their own mistakes. Oleksandr Shovkovskyi admitted as much after the match.
"We made mistakes that put us in a very awkward position in the 11th minute. If it hadn't happened in the first 11 minutes, it would have been a completely different game, there would have been no confusion among the guys. I said that we have no right to be inferior to our opponents in such components as desire, motivation and fight. These are the components that equalise all teams. Then comes the individual skill.Unfortunately,we made a lot of mistakes today in the realisation of chances and individual defensive play," Sport.ua quoted the coach as saying (13.05.23).
In turn, Roman Hryhorchuk noted that in order to be so successful in the game against Dynamo, it was necessary to be flawless. In some episodes, his wards really demonstrated football, which not only pleased the coach, but also appealed to the media.
"I am very pleased.We really need three points because we are in a difficult situation. We are already a little bit higher strategically, and psychologically we are a little bit easier. Several parts of this game were absolutely perfect. Unfortunately, there were not as many of them as we would have liked, but we should be happy about that, too," said the Odesa manager.
"Chornomorets was a pleasant surprise - the Sailors once again gave a fight to a status rival - this is the general opinion of journalists.
"Thirst. Mutual understanding. Speed. Understanding how to get to your goal. Efficiency in implementation. "Chornomorets looked much hungrier than their opponent today. Yes, Dynamo had a chance to cling to a draw, but the implementation failed. Once again, there were controversial hits in the penalty area, which the referees shrugged off. "The Pirates look very hungry for football and show it on the pitch. And it's not just about the fight for survival.By the way, youcan forget about it: the gap from the transition zone has already reached five points," shared his impressions of what he saw Ua-football.com (13.05.23).
Thus, Chornomorets broke Dynamo's seven-match unbeaten run and inflicted the first defeat on Oleksandr Shovkovskyi as the team's acting head coach. However, the White and Blues also showed character, almost turning the result upside down.
"Wemust pay tribute to the Kyiv team, who, after the initial shock of the first half, found the strength to turn the tide and had every chance to at least save the game until the last... Thecoaching staff of Kyiv received enough information to thinkabout," Footboom1.com (13.05.23 ) summarised the result of the match at the Dynamo Stadium named after Valeriy Lobanovsky.
With Lobanovskyi in my heart
Ironically, 13 May is a special day in the life of the capital's club. This is definitely not the kind of "gift" Dynamo fans were expecting. But historically, memorable dates leave their mark on the psychology of footballers.
"Today I quoted a few sayings of the respected Meter - both before the match and after the game. He left a very big imprint on my life, on my understanding of football, on my perception of myself in football. These are different times now, the guys have never seen or talked to Valery Vasilyevich, they know about him only from memories, books, videos, and this is the only way they can touch a coach of such a world-class magnitude as Lobanovsky.
Speaking about me personally, I have noticed a tendency that we always play poorly on this day for some reason," said Oleksandr Shovkovskyi (Sportukraina.com, 14.05.23).
Thus, 13 May is a significant date in the history of Dynamo. On this day 96 years ago, in 1927, the team was founded, which would later win a large number of both domestic and international trophies. And in 2002, the great Dynamo coach passed away, whose memory is honoured every year. The media never fails to pay attention to the anniversary, and they always cover it extensively and remind generations of readers about the most prominent Ukrainian football specialist.
"During his outstanding career, Lobanovsky led Dynamo to the gold medals of the USSR championship eight times, the highest awards of the Ukrainian championship five times, and won the Cup Winners' Cup (1975 and 1986) and the UEFA Super Cup (1975) with the White and Blues.
In 2000-2002, Valeriy Lobanovskiy led the Ukrainian national team and took it to the play-offs for the 2002 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.
The UEFA Ruby Order and the FIFA Order of Merit, of which he is a recipient, are an assessment of the football master's services to European and world football.
In 2017, UEFA included Lobanovsky in the list of the 10 most outstanding coaches of European football since the union was established in 1954," Ukrinform.ua (14.05.23) recalled.
This year's celebrations were no exception. Although under martial law in Ukraine, the traditional rally in memory of Valeriy Vasylovych is not held for security reasons, there were still many flowers at the monuments to the poet that day, as always. Since early morning, fans have been coming to the grave at Baikove Cemetery and the monument near the stadium - both those who knew this outstanding man personally and those who admired Dynamo's successes in the stadium stands or on TV.
"Among them, as always, the closest ones are Valeriy Vasylovych's daughter Svitlana, who is a faithful keeper of the memory of the outstanding mentor... Here you could see people of completely different generations - both the youngest pupils of the Dynamo Academy, who are gaining their first victories with the Dynamo emblem on their hearts, and honoured football veterans.
The image of Valeriy Lobanovsky is an example of selfless service to his cause, to which he gave everything he had. 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.The bright memory of Valeriy Lobanovsky will always live on among those who have the letter "D" engraved on their hearts," the official Dynamo website said (Fcdynamo.com, 14.05.23).
The capital's club also received numerous congratulations on its birthday. In particular, the European Football Union congratulated Kyiv, recalling the legendary victory of the Ukrainian team over Barcelona in the Champions League in 1997. In that match, Lobanovsky's men defeated the Catalan giants 3-0 thanks to goals from Serhiy Rebrov, Yuriy Maksymov and Yuriy Kalitvintsev.
"On13 May 1927, Dynamo Kyiv football club was founded!Footage of the memorablevictory over Barcelona in 1997," reads a post on UEFA's official Twitter page (13.05.23).
Shakhtar Donetsk also sent a greeting in the form of a photo of the team captains shaking hands with each other, posting a corresponding post on the social network.
Counting on three
It is the Miners who are currently closest in the table in terms of rank to win back the championship from Dynamo this season. On Saturday, the Donetsk team defeated Ingulets and moved five points clear of their pursuers in the race for UPL gold.
However, recent victories have been extremely difficult for the Orange and Blacks. And this time, they were lucky to break the resistance of the outsider only in the second half and with the help of several factors.
"Thematch, in which the favourite was able to score only after the break, ended in Shakhtar's victory. The Pitmen scored twice in the opposition goal. More precisely, once they did it on their own (Yukhym Konoplya scored after a corner), and once again Pavlov's own goal helped them to do so.
At the time of the second goal, Ihor Yovychevych's team was already playing in the majority, because in the 78th minute Ingulets' keeper Palamarchuk received a red card - outside his own penalty area, he knocked down Sikan, who ran out with him face to face (possibly offside, but the replay does not allow us to verify this - and the VAR system, which would have given a convincing answer, did not work in the match), " Ua states. tribuna.com (14.05.23).
The Donetsk club disagrees with the opinion of the press, citing quite convincing arguments. Indeed, one cannot fail to note the correct reaction of Shakhtar's coaching staff to the local failures of their wards during the match against Petrivka. It was thanks to the decisions of their coaches that the Pitmen celebrated the victory at the Lviv Arena.
"All the teams - both those fighting for survival and those fighting for the championship - are under pressure.You have to be psychologically stable, balanced, not succumb to pressure when the game is not going well, when you lose your chances, when you may lose control somewhere.
...Substitutions are an indicator that the team exists, that we breathe as one, that we are a family. And that not only those who start the game have to decide everything, but also the bench. And that's our strength - that we support each other, that Sikan earned a key sending-off, that Totovytskyi, having burst in at second pace, gave a pass to score in his own goal. These key actions that brought us the result were made by the players who supported those who started in the starting line-up. So we will have a rest and prepare for the four finals. And today we are one step closer to our goal," said Igor Jovicevic at the post-match press conference (Shakhtar.com, 13.05.23).
"Dnipro-1, which has topped the table for most of the current campaign, has also been struggling to find success lately. Last week, Oleksandr Kucher's side played Oleksandriya in the postponed match of the 1st round, which ended in a scandal.
The match was tense and emotional. The price of a mistake was very high, especially for Dnipro, who would have caught up with Shakhtar in terms of points if they had won. However, the opponent proved to be a tough nut to crack and did not allow themselves to be beaten - 1-1.
A real flurry of emotions was caused by an episode in the middle of the first half, when the head referee Yaroslav Kozik awarded a dubious (in the opinion of many media representatives) penalty kick to Ruslan Rotan's team. This provoked a clash between the coaching staffs, the ejection of Oleksandriya's coach and Dnipro's administrator Vadym Komardin, and the subsequent high-profile media debate about the match.
In any case, the 11-metre high goal did not help Dnipro win. However, they got their revenge on Monday, narrowly defeating Minaj and reducing the gap with Shakhtar to two points.
While most of the season was focused on the Pitmen's struggle against Dnipro-1, Zorya intervened in the title race. The Luhansk side are having a phenomenal spring season and are already putting pressure on Kucher's men.
The media generally unanimously call Patrick van Leeuwen's team the best in the tournament so far. It's not about the fact that on Sunday they thrashed Metalist 5-0, scoring four goals before the break. The victory over Kharkiv only underlined the incredible form that the team has gained under the leadership of the Dutch specialist.
"For thefirst time in many years, we have three real contenders for the title. And no matter how you assess the importance of individual factors, Zorya really has a chance to win the championship for the first time in its history. Even despite being 5 points behind.
"Zorya are in better shape and have easier opponents - anything is possible. If we look at the calendar again, everything may depend on the head-to-head match with Shakhtar. "Zorya is definitely capable of taking 12 points with the other four rivals. And if they manage to beat the miners, their chances of winning the title will increase significantly. And the question of who will play in the Champions League qualifiers is completely open," notes Ua.tribuna.com (12.05.23).
Luhansk have already dealt with Metalist. The match with Shakhtar is scheduled for 24 May, after which the Donetsk team will probably face the decisive confrontation with Dnipro-1. That is, the leaders will play each other at least once at the finish line and will definitely lose points. Despite the hard times, we have an incredible intrigue. As long as there are no scandals...
Other issues of football life
The failure of the U-16 in Slovakia. The youth national team of Ukraine (players not older than 2007) started with two defeats at the UEFA Development Tournament in Slovakia, where it has been training since May 5.
Our young men opened the competition on 10 May with a match against the hosts, the fate of which was decided in a penalty shootout. The Slovaks were more accurate - 3:1, while the main time ended in a draw - 1:1. Two days later, Volodymyr Yezerskyi's wards met their peers from Ireland and this time lost 1-3 in regular time. The Ukrainians will play their final match against Latvia on 15 May.
"This national team of Ukraine is preparing for the qualifying round of Euro 2024 (U-17). Between 15 and 21 October, the blue and yellows will meet the teams of Germany, Finland and Liechtenstein (the host of the competition).
Mini-tournaments at this stage will take place from 1 July to 21 November 2023.The winners of the two first places in the qualifying groups and the five best third-place winners in the matches with the first and second teams will advance to the elite qualifying round, "the UAF official website reminds.
Assistance from Dynamo and the Surkis Brothers Foundation to the Security and Defence Forces of Ukraine. Volunteers and philanthropists continue to hold the humanitarian front. The management of Dynamo Kyiv has once again collected a multi-tonne aid package for our defenders and refugees. Soon, soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the Border Guard Service and IDPs in different regions of the country will receive all the essentials. On Tuesday, 9 May, another batch of trucks with humanitarian aid left the Valery Lobanovsky Dynamo Stadium for various units.
"Loaders are filling large trucks to the brim with food and hygiene kits. The amount of aid is impressive! More than 30 tonnes of cargo! Part of this aid will go to our defenders. In particular, those who are protecting the state borders from the enemy in times of war.
Border guards are examining the cargo. They say that such help is very timely. Sports patrons have not forgotten about internally displaced persons. There are many children among the people who had to leave their homes because of the shelling.We are providing specialised food for them," reads the Podrobnosti story (Podrobnosti.ua, 10.05.23).
Vitaliy Sivkov, Dynamo's first vice-president, also spoke about the peculiarities of the next batch of aid in an interview with the club's website.
"Thework has been going on and will continue. Today, if I'm not mistaken, is the 440th day of the war. But still, my soul hurts like on the first day, because there is no less grief, no less blood shed. But the thirst for victory, which we all cherish and do everything we can to bring it closer, does not weaken. I hope we will achieve our goals. We are helping our Armed Forces to cope with a very difficult task.
Today's shipments have a certain peculiarity. We have already sent a variety of aid - detergents, hygiene products, juices, dry soups, cereals - buckwheat, rice, and much more. Today, there is one cargo in these trucks that touches my heart - baby food for the smallest children under one year old.
Every day, new loads arrive. They travel a long way - from our partners in the US, through partners in Europe. These cargoes arrive at the ports where we meet them and deliver them to their destination. Our Foundation also makes purchases on its own and helps partners deliver goods to Ukraine. This work will continue every day until the parade of our victory takes place in Kyiv," assured one of the leaders of the Kyiv club." (Fcdynamo.com, 10.05.23).
Orest LELEKA
