According to the Spanish publication Sport, Girona's sporting director Kike Carcelle wanted to invite Artem Dovbyk to the team even earlier, but the forward's transfer was completed only after Viktor Tsygankov's transfer.
Viktor Tsygankov and Artem DovbykAccording to journalists, the forward has been on the radar of the Spanish club's management for quite some time:
"He has been in Ukraine for many years. But no one noticed him. Only Girona. Only the uneasy look of sporting director Kike Carcel. He was on the European market, the one that remains hidden under big numbers, for which 80, 90, 100 million are paid... Or even more.
Dovbyk was in his own country after a not very successful experience in Denmark. But he continued to score goals. That is why Carcelle wanted to take him a few years ago. But they couldn't, because Girona were playing in the Segunda, which is not very attractive for someone like him, who has made an art out of scoring goals."
However, not one sporting director was the key to the forward's transfer:
"It didn't happen overnight. Once Dobvik's potential was identified, there was a lot of quiet work. Quietly and discreetly, to prevent him from entering the market. Girona's sporting director managed to lure Tsygankov away from Dynamo thanks to the quiet efforts of the president of the board of directors, Pere Guardiola.
It was a preliminary and almost necessary step to invite Artem. Without Tsygankov, whom Girona hid for two weeks at the Caldes de Malavella golf resort next to their La Vinya sports complex, Dovbyk would not have come."
Finally, the journalists note that Dovbyk has an impact not only on his team's performance, but also on the opponent's:
"He's big (1.89m) but extremely coordinated, with a creative approach to understanding his difficult position. He is great in the air (he has four headers, second only to Harry Kane of Bayern Munich, who has scored five) and understands what Michel is asking him to do.
His very presence determines the opponent's game. Whoever he is, whatever level he is at. He changes the nature of any match. He has always been like that. His last season at Ukrainian side Dnipro-1 (29 goals and eight assists in 39 games) already shows this influence."
