Renowned expert Serhiy Puchkov shared his thoughts on the events of the 25th round of the Ukrainian Championship.
- The tour began with the match between Chornomorets and Kryvbas, in which the visitors won with a minimum score of 2-1. In your opinion, what is the reason for the instability of your former team from Odesa?
- It seems that some reason or a set of reasons at Chornomorets do not allow the players to reach a stable level. But to know the answer to this question, you need to be inside the team and know exactly what the atmosphere is like. Only then can we say with certainty what is causing the too frequent loss of points. Perhaps it is not the best way to write about a particular team member: one was invited to one club, another to another. And there was also a lot written about Bragara, who is joining Dynamo in the summer. They also write about the coach, that several clubs want to see him. I do not exclude that the fear of responsibility for the result is pressing on the "sailors", which became apparent in the match with Kryvyi Rih. "Kryvbas took advantage of this, turning the game in their favour in the second half. The Kryvyi Rih team is on a roll and is fighting for the Europa League, if not for the championship, then for sure.
- Two more results identical to Odesa's were recorded during the round. In both games, the victories were strong-willed: LNZ defeated Oleksandriya away from home, while Shakhtar prevailed over Zorya. Is it all business?
- Unfortunately, I was unable to watch the Oleksandriya match. But this result shows that the closer we get to the end of the championship, the more fiercely each team fights to avoid being at the bottom of the standings. And the game between Shakhtar and Zorya was an interesting one, especially the ending. "The Shakhtar are claiming first place, and now their main competition will be with their main rival, Dynamo Kyiv. For several games now, the Donetsk team has been showing its long-standing miner's character. Shakhtar used to be known as a cup team, but now it strives to win the championship year after year. Despite creating a number of chances at the opponent's goal, the Donetsk team's execution is not always effective. However, in the match against Zorya, the winning goal was scored in the final minutes in a beautiful style.
- Like the other championship contenders Shakhtar and Kryvbas, Dynamo Kyiv also picked up three points. Does the big 3-0 score in the home game against Polissia fully reflect the course of events on the pitch?
- Of course, the result itself suggests that the opponent did not show the fight and resistance that should have taken place in the game against Dynamo. However, the Kyiv team is fighting for the championship, so they try to get maximum points in every game. In May, we expect an interesting match between our two giants, Shakhtar and Dynamo. It will be a game for first place.
- While in the autumn part of the championship Dnipro-1's performance gave experts reason to talk about the fight for the championship, in the spring the team seemed to have been replaced...
- It's hard to understand. In the autumn, everything was in their hands, and everyone hoped that Dnipro-1 (as well as Kryvbas) would claim gold medals, but somewhere the wheels went flat. What exactly was the reason is unknown. Apparently, the Dnipro team did not fully acquire the spirit of victory. Most likely, they underperformed psychologically. And it's hard to rebuild now. So now Dnipro-1, along with Kryvbas and Rukh, will be fighting for European Cup tickets.
- Vorskla's winless streak has been going on for five rounds in a row, with Poltava losing their third home match in a row. What do you attribute this to?
- You know, a lot depends on the situation in the country. I mean the war. In each round of the UPL, matches are interrupted due to air raid alerts, and this greatly affects the players - both psychologically and physically. They are preparing for the game, charging up in the right way - and then suddenly a siren sounds and there is an unexpected and uncertain break! As a result, the rhythm and the game setting are lost. And this affects not only Vorskla, but also any other team. Speaking of Poltava, I would like to praise them. Vorskla's players are well done, they deservedly won the right to compete for the Ukrainian Cup. As for the performance of Poltava in the last games of the championship, no matter what opponents the team lost to, the problems should be looked for only within themselves.
- Your former teammate from Dnipro Dnipro and Metalurh Zaporizhzhia, Viktor Skrypnyk, was invited to Metalist 1925 to help the team move up from the middle of the standings, but the opposite happened. Is it the lack of performers or the restructuring of the team game?
- Both of them are in the mix. Apparently, Skrypnyk was not given the opportunity to take the players he wanted. Most likely, this is the first thing. And the second is that he knew exactly where he was going. The coach hoped that he would be given the opportunity to select the right players, but his expectations were not met. Now we have to work with the personnel we have available. First and foremost, Metalist 1925 needs to think about how to maintain its place in the elite. It all depends on how the Kharkiv team finishes the championship. After all, the fight at the bottom of the standings is very serious. I'm sure that every coach is now sitting with a pencil and calculating where his team can find points and where they can lose them. He is also calculating the possible losses and gains of his competitors. Therefore, the most important thing is that this mathematics is fixed in the minds of each of the players of Metalist 1925. Now psychology comes first. The coaches have to talk to the players, set them up, motivate them and prepare them for games.
- The match between Minaj and Rukh, in which teams from different poles of the standings met, was one of the most interesting in the round. Did you win the game?
- I think so. The Western Ukrainian derby was really interesting. Each opponent has its own objectives: "Rukh is fighting to get into the European Cups, while Minaj is fighting to maintain its Premier League registration. Each of the opponents is motivated by the league, which affected yesterday's game. "It was difficult for Minaj to defend for most of the match, but the Transcarpathians launched counterattacks at every opportunity. We should pay tribute to them for their dedication and desire. In general, the game was one that can be characterised by two sayings - "The bottom did not want to, but the top could not" and "The scythe found a stone". So the score is on the game.
Viacheslav Kulchytskyi