May is a landmark month for FC Dynamo (Kyiv). On 13 May 1927 the star of the team rose on the football sky, which won 29 gold medals of the championships of the former USSR and Ukraine, as well as 22 Cups. Many of their victories were won in May. The first of them - in the first championship of the USSR in 1936, in which the "white-blue" won silver medals, they celebrated on 31 May in Leningrad in a match with the club "Krasnaya Zarya" - 7:2. The Dynamo won their first USSR Cup on 18 May 1937, beating their Odessa clubmates 4:2 in Kiev.
In the championship of the USSR in 1938, on 18 May the Kyivians defeated Spartak Leningrad on their field - 7:0, on the 24th "Pishchevik" (Moscow) was defeated - 4:2. In the championship of 1939 Dynamo defeated "Elektrik" (Leningrad) on 6 May - 1:0, and five days later "Lokomotiv" (Moscow) - 2:1. In May 1940 in the national championship were defeated Moscow "Torpedo" - 1:0 and CDKA - 4 1. Many victories in May were won by the team from the banks of the Dnieper River in the subsequent championships of the former USSR. On 6 May 1991, in the last season of all-union football, in Kyiv at the Republican Stadium the Kyivians defeated (2:1) their Moscow teammates.
And the first May victory in the debut championship of independent Ukraine was achieved on 7 May 1992 in the away match with Dnipro - 2:1. There were May failures in different years, but they are many times less.
The 2000th Dynamo goal in the USSR championships was scored on 28 May 1985 in the match Dynamo vs Spartak (Moscow). Igor Belanov, the future winner of the Golden Ball-1986, scored on 51 minutes. He set the winning point - 2:0, he also opened the scoring in this game. On 18 May 1993 in the match Lithuania - Ukraine - 1:2, which was held in Vilnius, Viktor Leonenko and Dmytro Mykhailenko scored goals. On 1 May 1996 in the away match against Turkey, Andriy Shevchenko scored the first goal in the national team of Ukraine. Then the future Golden Ball 2004 winner spoilt the mood of the opposing goalkeepers of our main team 47 more times, becoming its head coach, and today the president of the UAF.
May brought two magnificent victories for Dynamo Kyiv in the European Cup tournament. On 14 May 1975 in Basel on the field of the St. Jacobs stadium Dynamo defeated Ferencvaros (Budapest) in the final match of the Cup Winners' Cup with the score 3:0. After the award ceremony, UEFA president Artemio Franchi said: "I can't remember when in recent years one team would have such a convincing advantage over another in a final. "Dynamo are truly a club of extra class." In this game two goals were scored by Onishchenko and one by Blokhin. Together with them in Valery Lobanovsky's team, Rudakov, Konkov, Matvienko, Troshkin, Fomenko, Reshko, Buriak and Kolotov played in the final.
On 2 May 1986 in Lyon on the field of the stadium "Gerlan" in the presence of 45 thousand spectators, most of whom were from Spain, Dynamo Kiev in its second Cup Final defeated the club Atletico (Madrid) - 3:0. "Today we lost to an outstanding team," - said after the game head coach of Madrid Luis Aragones. Zavarov, Blokhin and Yevtushenko distinguished themselves in this match. Together with them, this victory was given to millions of fans by Chanov, Bessonov, Baltacha, Bal, Kuznetsov, Demyanenko, Rats, Yakovenko, Yaremchuk and Belanov. It was the second European Cup success of Valeriy Lobanovskiy's wards.
Undoubtedly, 13 May 2002 is a black day in the history of Dynamo club. On this day at 20:35 in one of the hospitals in Zaporizhzhya the tireless football heart of the outstanding coach Valeriy Lobanovsky stopped. On 7 May, after the end of the Ukrainian championship match between Zaporozhye Metallurg and Dynamo, the head coach of Kyiv team was taken to the hospital by ambulance right from the stadium. The best specialists of the country fought for Lobanovskyi's life, but alas.... He died honourably, worthy of his greatness. Valeriy Vasilyevich deserved incredible national love.
8 times his charges won the gold of the USSR championship, 6 times - the Cup of the country, 5 times - the championship of independent Ukraine, 3 times - the Cup of the country. In 1975, in which Dynamo won the Cup Winners' Cup and the European Super Cup, Valeriy Lobanovsky's team was called one of the strongest in the world. Lobanovskiy is the Honoured Coach of the USSR and Ukraine, holder of the UEFA Rubin Order of Merit, Hero of Ukraine (posthumously). For a long time we will measure our football by Lobanovsky....
And what will May 2024 be like for Dynamo? Will the third star appear above the Dynamo emblem? It may happen if Kyiv team will become the champions of Ukraine for the 17th time. Our main football tournament, 33rd in number, will finish on 25 May.
Oleksandr LIPENKO for Dynamo.kiev.ua