Dynamo U-19 captain Nazar Balaba, who scored a goal in the home match against Metalist 1925 Kharkiv (Dynamo won 7-0), shared his impressions of the match.
Nazar Balaba (photo: fcdynamo.com)- Of course, we are happy, it's always nice to win, and even more so with such a score. When we were warming up before the match, the coaches said that we needed to get in a better mood because we came out relaxed. When we gathered in a circle in front of the mat, I told the guys that we needed to get together and score a quick goal, then it would be easier to play. Just like in the previous game against Obolon, we managed to do that, and then we brought the score to a crushing result. Such teams usually close down against us, so we need to score in the first minutes, and, as I said, then it becomes easier to play. The opponent opens up, and we have areas where we can run in and, since we have fast strikers, they can do it.
- Did you have any premonitions that you would be able to score today?
- I don't know, but I've been wanting to score for a long time, but it didn't work out. Today I accidentally scored with my back (smiles). It's good that it happened. To be honest, I didn't even notice how the ball bounced to me. There was a corner kick, Ponomarenko took a shot, the ball hit the crossbar. I turned away and suddenly felt the ball hit me in the head, then looked - and it was already in the goal.
- What did the coach say after the game? Was he pleased that you won three games?
- Yes, he said that we played well today, it was good that we set ourselves up. We need to keep this attitude and go into every game with this mindset. If we are relaxed, we will not succeed.
- Also, in three matches, the team has not conceded a single goal, is it good for you as a defender?
- Yes, it's really very pleasing. My coaches and I said that we always have to play to the limit, and we will score our goals. Even when the score was 4-0 and 5-0, I told the guys that they had to play to the end to avoid conceding. Because the difference between goals scored and conceded matters. We had 10:0, now it's 17:0. I think it will help us in the future if we have an equal number of points with one of our opponents.
