Mykola Neseniuk: "Is the champion of Ukraine known?"

Famous Ukrainian journalist Mykola Nesenyuk talks about the interesting information campaign around Shakhtar Donetsk.

For the second month in a row, Ukrainian sports news outlets have been reporting almost daily on Shakhtar's chances of qualifying for the UEFA Champions League group stage without qualifying matches. This is indeed possible, but on one condition - Shakhtar must first win the Ukrainian league, which is still a month away and which Dnipro, Kryvbas and Dynamo still have a chance of winning!

But for some reason, there are no reports on how the fight for the Ukrainian title is going on in the mainstream media!

I might be told that with my experience I should have realised that Shakhtar were the champions back in February, when they were first given a win over Oleksandriya in a game that ended in a draw, and then in the game against Kryvbas the referee first allowed the Shakhtar to score an immoral goal and then sent off an opposing player in a dubious situation just in case. Wasn't it already clear then that Shakhtar would be promoted to the top no matter what?

Of course, I saw it all clearly. And I was not the only one. For two months now, everyone who is interested in our football has been watching with irony as Shakhtar have been dragged by the ears to the championship by all possible and impossible means. This includes controversial decisions by referees, the transfer of matches to places where it is convenient for the Miners to play, and much more.

You can accuse me of making it all up, that everything is done fairly, and that my conclusions are the result of my support for Dynamo, which I have never hidden. But it's not me who has been considering Shakhtar's championship a foregone conclusion for two months now and thinking about their chances of qualifying for the Champions League! On the contrary, I continue to believe in the honesty and integrity of our football managers and the referees they appoint. And those who think otherwise and are convinced that Shakhtar are guaranteed first place in advance could at least for the sake of decency not consider it a foregone conclusion and not discuss the team's chances that do not yet exist!

Someone will object. He will say that you would rather watch your Dynamo team not lose precious points in the league games! Excuse me, but this is football! Everyone can lose in the championship! Liverpool, Manchester City, Barcelona, Juventus, Bayern Munich... Only Shakhtar are guaranteed not only to lose but also to draw in the Ukrainian league this spring! What makes it better than the named and unnamed superclubs? What gives our media confidence in its victories for months to come?

This confidence seems to me to be completely shameless. What about you?

Mykola NESENYUK