On 5 August, former Dynamo Kyiv midfielder and coach Oleg Luzhnyi celebrates his 55th birthday. UEFA honorary member Hryhoriy Surkis congratulated the hero of the day.
Hryhoriy SurkisDear Oleg Romanovich!
Please accept my warmest and most sincere congratulations on your 55th birthday!
You were not just one of the best defenders in the history of Ukrainian football. You did not just win numerous titles and trophies in Ukraine and abroad. You were not just one of the leaders of the last legendary team of Valery Lobanovsky's Dynamo Kyiv and the great Ukrainian national team at the turn of the century. You became the personification of a true captain and a player who never gives up on anyone!
Generations of our footballers have looked up to you and continue to do so. You were adored by the fans, who undoubtedly still hold you up as a role model for young people - and not just in terms of football. They say that they don't make them anymore, but I believe that thanks to your efforts to pass on your unique experience to the current players, we will see those who will be worthy of the title of "new Luhansk".
It is also with particular admiration that I acknowledge your civic stance and patriotism, which has distinguished you as long as I have known you, and is even more telling now - during the terrible period of the Russian Federation's armed aggression against our homeland, which is heroically fighting for freedom and its democratic choice.
I sincerely wish you happiness, health, peace and prosperity. I wish you new victories and achievements, and especially a speedy Victory over the common enemy!
Sincerely yours,
Hryhoriy Surkis
