Oleh Fedorchuk: "I am not sure that Kucher is in control of the situation at Dnipro-1"

Famous Ukrainian coach Oleh Fedorchuk told theUkrainian Footballwebsiteabout themain reasons for Dnipro-1's defeat in the Champions League qualifiers, problematic positions in the team, further games in European competitions, prospects in the UPL, and what Dovbyk should do.

- Oleg Viktorovich, why did Dnipro-1 lose?

- The trend is bad. I would say that this applies to many of our clubs - the fight for European competitions is more important than the game itself in European competitions. "Dnipro-1 fought so desperately for a ticket to the CL, but they were not ready for the games themselves.

- Did the team not run, or did it lack quality players?

- There were problematic positions. Let's start with the goalkeeper. The team has four goalkeepers in the application, but there is a 19-year-old Kinareikin. 80% of a goalkeeper's game is not about jumping on the line, but about leading the defence. Arranging the defenders, giving suggestions, interacting. Can a 19-year-old without much experience do all this right away in the CL? He only conceded one goal, the second in the 73rd minute. This is still not bad for a debutant.

- And besides the goalkeeper?

- Right-back Denys Miroshnychenko failed the game. He plays well in attack, has a good shot. But it was in defence that he always had problems. Especially with the selection of the ball. Two goals came from his flank. Juancar gave two assists. Rubchynskyi sometimes acted interestingly in the midfield, but he also made a lot of mistakes. And in general, the team looked doomed. It didn't seem to me that the team was thinking about the game against Marseille.

- Is the coach in control of the situation?

- I'm not sure. After such a defeat, to say that the team didn't deserve it... A draw would have been a miracle in such a game.

- Did Pykhalenko's absence (injury) play an important role?

- Absolutely. Dovbyk would probably have played much better. It's very difficult without his cutting and clever passes. He is a city-forming link for Dnipro-1. However, the opponent lost the captain and team leader (Shenkeveld) at the beginning of the game (23 minutes), so it is wrong to complain about the loss of Pykhalenko.

- Is Dnipro-1 ready for the UPL?

- The team was third in the second round in the spring. And I think that such a team can do no more than fight for third place next season. The only thing is that if sporting director Yevhen Krasnikov quickly finds reinforcements, then Dnipro-1 can add quality.

However, of course, the big question is for the club itself, for the management - there is no doubt that they have received requests that such, such and such positions need really high-quality reinforcement. But what can a sporting director do if he is given the opportunity to make purely local transfers? If you take players from teams lower down the table, you don't improve even relative to your own level.

- You don't see Dnipro-1 in the Champions League group. Is it possible to reach the play-offs from the Europa League group?

- The answer depends on the opponents in the group. The main thing is that there are no teams from Cyprus (smiles). "Dnipro-1 doesn't look like a team that will definitely reach the play-offs right now.

- What do you think Artem Dovbyk should do?

- It's time for Artem to change championships. He needs a shake-up, new challenges, a stronger tournament. I think this match showed that the price tag of $15 million for him may be a little too high. Five million less and he'll be fine.

Anton Terekhov.