Yuriy Virt: "The Lucescu-Shovkovsky tandem will be interesting"

Former head coach of Veres Rivne Yuriy Virt talks about the first high-profile events of this off-season.

- Shakhtar surprised us by changing the coach and coming back from the holidays late. How will all this affect the Shakhtar's readiness for the 2023/2024 season?

- I don't see a problem in this. After a successful season, when Shakhtar won another gold medal, the players were given the opportunity to have a good rest. This schedule was planned in advance. Yes, it coincided with the change of coach, but in general, I am confident that there will be no disruptions in Shakhtar's preparations.

- A significant group of Shakhtar's young players are still playing at Euro 2023 U-21. How will they manage to prepare for the new season?

- This is a problem. However, it is a pleasant problem. Usually, in such cases, when the tournament ends, the players are given 7-10 days of rest. In any case, the guys will be in a great mood and in good shape during this entire period - right up to the start of the new season. And this will help them to enter the next game marathon more easily.

- Why did Shakhtar choose Patrick van Leeuwen over Jovetic? They didn't want to let the Dutch coach go from Zorya, who are also preparing for the European Cups...

- Van Leeuwen is well acquainted with Shakhtar, he worked in the club's academy. If Shakhtar were going to change their head coach, there was probably no better option. "Last season, Zorya showed a great game, a good result, and of the specialists currently in Ukraine, Patrick van Leeuwen is the best choice. I am not surprised by this appointment. As for Igor Jovicevic, it happens - coaches leave even after they win the championship with the team.

- Shakhtar may lose several leading players - at least Trubin and Sudakov are on the radar of European clubs...

- Yes, they can and, I think, should be sold. If Shakhtar are offered a lot of money and the offer comes from a top club, we have to let the guys go. There are no players who cannot be replaced. Trubin is indeed in high demand at the moment. The main thing is to release players on time. Of course, after the departure of such players as Sudakov and Trubin, the team will lose some potential, but this is the case when you have to make sacrifices.

- In the midst of the summer training camp, Zorya not only lost a group of leading players, but also a successful coach. How do you assess Nenad Lalatović's appointment, and what awaits Zorya in the new season?

- It is difficult to predict how all this will affect Zorya's performance. It is also difficult to explain the choice in favour of Lalatović. We had to look for a replacement for van Leeuwen in a firefight. As far as I know, Ukrainian specialists Oleksandr Babych and Valerii Kryventsov were also candidates for the position of Zorya's head coach. However, they appointed Nenad Lalatovic, whose style of play is probably the most suitable for the current Zorya. Whether this is the right choice will become clear only after 5-7 rounds of the Ukrainian championship.

- Dynamo, despite all the talk, retained Mircea Lucescu as head coach and brought back Andriy Yarmolenko. What will this do for the White and Blues?

- An experienced player like Yarmolenko is needed by the current Dynamo Kyiv. Andriy will be a kind of "uncle" in this team, a link between the players and the head coach. In addition, I think Yarmolenko will strengthen the game of the White and Blues, and there will be a lot of benefits from his return. In any case, I'm happy with this decision of Andriy and Dynamo.

As for Mircea Lucescu, he has a valid contract with Dynamo and he wants to work. God bless him with health. The Lucescu-Shovkovsky tandem will be interesting in the new season. Dynamo has a lot of travelling and workload ahead, so the coaches will complement each other. After an unsuccessful last season, there is hope that the White and Blues will perform much better next season. "Lucescu is integrating more and more youngsters into the first team, and this is very good. I believe that last season was a transitional one for Dynamo, and now we can expect a rise.

Oleg Semenchenko