On Thursday, 17 August, Dynamo Kyiv will play the first match of the Conference League qualifying play-offs against Turkish side Besiktas. The match is nominally home for Dynamo, but due to the war, it will take place in Bucharest at the Giulesti Stadium. The day before the game, the Romanian capital hosted a pre-match press conference with the head coach of the Ukrainian team, Mircea Lucescu.
Mircea Lucescu- If the players feel at home in this stadium, how does Mr Lucescu feel here?
- We made the right choice by choosing Bucharest, the Rapid Stadium. The stadium gathers spectators, they cheer for us. This is very good, because we have been playing for almost a year and a half in front of empty stands, with no support at all. It's hard, because in the end, the players play for the fans. The fact that the spectators come and support us is a great help to our players.
- What are your expectations from playing against a club that is not a stranger to you? Will this match be special for you?
- I spent two unforgettable years here. The first season was great, everything we did was admirable. We won the league, beat our main rivals for gold from Istanbul both home and away. It was the club's centenary. We finished the championship in first place with a big lead. A grand celebration was organised in honour of this.
But the second year of work was a complete disappointment. We were leading the championship by ten points, and many observers said that the championship was essentially over, it was no longer interesting, and something had to be done about it. From the next round on, someone really got down to business to change this. We lost 0-3, finishing the game with six field players. This kept happening, and eventually we lost the championship, ending up two points behind the champion. It was a complete disappointment for all of us. So the first year was great, but the second year was not.
Another thing that ties me to Beşiktaş is that I donated part of my salary to build a new arena. In this way, I contributed to the revival of this stadium. I have connections and good memories not only with Beşiktaş but also with Galatasaray.
I can also say that Turkish fans are special. When I travel to Istanbul and other Turkish cities, they come up to me and shake my hand. At some point in your life, you only remember the positive moments, and everything else is forgotten.
Also, emphasising the peculiarities of Turkish fans, I can recall an episode when they literally forced a visiting player to leave the pitch with their whistle in a match against German side Leipzig - he simply could not stand the noise. Speaking of which, I want our fans to shout down the local fans tomorrow. I know that there will be about a thousand Besiktas fans, so I want our support to be louder.
- What do you think of the fact that there will be a lot of Rapid fans at the stadium?
- That's why I mentioned Turkish fans, because parents with children who were forced to leave Ukraine for Romania will not be able to shout down the away sector. And I expect help from the organised Rapid fans in this regard, who could shout down the Turkish fans. I want Rapid's fans to behave like fans of a club that plays in the European arena, because I believe that their club will play in European competitions in the near future.
- Aren't you afraid of Beşiktaş, which hasn't lost since February?
- There is no one to be afraid of, but I can confirm that Beşiktaş has an experienced coach and good quality players who regularly come to the club from the top championships. Suffice it to mention Oxlade-Chamberlain and Rebic, who at a young age could have continued to play at a high level, but they chose good salaries and a good level of the championship. The big names in the Turkish league sign big-name players, and this makes the local league attractive to fans.
This is also why we need support tomorrow, because for various reasons we play with our own pupils, young inexperienced players aged 19-21, and we are in the process of raising them. And the support of the fans will help them show their best personal qualities.
