Justin Lonwijk will not take part in the final round of the UPL. The Dutch legionnaire went home for family reasons and will not play against Metalist 1925. We all understand that "family reasons" are just a formality. In the last matches, Lonwijk did not get any playing time. There was no point in leaving him.
Justin Lonwake. Photo by Oksana VasylievaWhen Mykola Shaparenko sustained a serious knee injury in the first round of the Europa League match against Besiktas, Dynamo began to urgently look for a replacement for the leader in the middle of the field. We managed to reach an agreement with Lonwijk. Denmark has very high taxes. Therefore, the contract with Dynamo is a good opportunity for him to earn money. Let's call a spade a spade.
The Dutchman appeared in the capital of Ukraine thanks to the Italian company GG11, which is represented in Ukraine by Ivan Pirozhenko and Sasha Yakovenko. The latter even played for Dynamo for a while. I understand that Justin was offered. Lucescu agreed. In times of war, there can't be a big choice of foreigners.
I was very impressed with Lonwijk. He has good anthropometry, works well with the ball, has a shot. He can play in several positions - in the middle of the field or on the wing. He went through the PSV school. In recent years, he played in the Danish championship, which is quite similar to our style of football.
I was sure that after the winter training camp the Dutchman would become Dynamo's main player. But the opposite happened. Lonwijk started to get only less game practice. He turned into a deep reserve. At the end of the season, he lost the competition for the status of a rotation player to Andrievsky, Garmash and Shepelev.
Perhaps Justin hasn't been able to adapt to the team or Lucescu's coaching requirements yet? Perhaps he is closer to the positions of Sydorchuk and Buyalsky than Shaparenko? Perhaps there are some personal problems? I am more inclined to the version that he was not trusted. Perris also sat for a long time and it seemed that his farewell to the club in the summer was obvious. And when we started to play him, it turned out that he could play football.
In the summer, the competition in the middle of the field will only increase. Shaparenko has recovered from his injury. Brazhko and Buletsa should return from loan. Andrievskyi played decent football in April and May. I really hope that Lonwijk will not be superfluous in this situation.
One of the club's main assets is Shaparenko. If he can regain his playing and physical condition, he has a good chance of being sold next summer. So far, Dynamo does not have such a player in the middle of the pitch. Lucescu will be 78 years old in the summer. His contract is for one more season. Sooner or later, Dynamo will have a new coach. One who can look at Justin from a different angle.
As this season shows, competition and squad depth can play a decisive role. Next season, Dynamo really needs to win back the championship and do well in European competitions. Even if it is the Conference League. On the contrary, this is an opportunity to reach the significant stages of this tournament. Therefore, the quality and quantity of the squad is very important.
Serhii Tyshchenko
