Ismael Bangura: "I expected very great achievements from Milevsky and Aliyev"

Who was the main star of Dynamo Kyiv in the mid-noughties, who were Artem Milevskyi and Oleksandr Aliyev, which of the Kyiv coaches influenced him the most, and what was his relationship with Ihor Surkis like? Former forward Ismael Bangura told about all this in an interview with UV.

- Isma, where are you now and what do you do?

- I live in France, in Paris to be exact. Mostly, I spend time with my family.

- Is football in your life now?

- Of course. Football is in my life and will always be. I am involved in some projects in the world of football, but I will be able to tell you about them a little later when they start.

- Think back to 2007. Who told you about the offer from Dynamo Kyiv?

- It was Ralph Geis Nagert, a Swiss agent.

- Did you know anything about Ukraine and Dynamo at the time?

- Oh, very little! At that moment, I only knew that it was very cold in your country and that Dynamo was playing in the Champions League.

- What were your first associations with Ukraine and Kyiv when you first arrived in our country?

- My first memories are related to the moment when I arrived to sign a contract with Dynamo. Nothing specific.

- If it's not a secret, was the salary at Dynamo much higher than before at Le Mans?

- Yes, the salary at Dynamo Kyiv was three times higher than in Le Mans.

- At Dynamo, you played under a lot of coaches: Anatolii Demyanenko, Jozsef Szabo, Oleh Luzhnyi and Yurii Semin. Which of them do you have the fondest memories of?

- I have good memories of Anatoliy Demyanenko, he was a good coach and we got along very well. He gave me a lot of good advice, even though I didn't speak the language, but I adapted very quickly. In general, I had a good relationship with all the coaches. Everyone played their role the right way. I hope they are all doing well.

- Who was your biggest friend when you played for Dynamo?

- Pape Dyakate and Yusuf Ayla. Dyakate and I were close friends.

- Who was the most talented teammate at Dynamo?

- All of them were talented, but I can especially mention, of course, Artem Milevskyi and Oleksandr Aliyev. I expected very great achievements from them in their careers.

- Who in that team worked the hardest during training?

- I can't single out anyone. We all worked hard in training and our strength was in unity and team spirit.

- In your opinion, which of the players of Dynamo at that time could have proved themselves at the top level of football?

- First of all, it was Andriy Yarmolenko.

- And who was the biggest star of that team?

- I think Serhii Rebrov.

- Who had the most expensive car?

- Many people had expensive cars, but I don't remember the specific models.

- What did you like to do in Kyiv?

- In my free time, I mostly slept a lot and watched TV.

- Did you like any Ukrainian dishes?

- Yes, I loved your borsch.

- And which ones, perhaps, on the contrary, did you not like?

- To be honest, I'm not picky in this matter at all and I treat all dishes normally.

- What is your most pleasant memory of a match with Dynamo?

- Of course, I will never forget that snowy match against Shakhtar, because it was the first time I played in the snow. And it is especially pleasant because we won 2-1.

- Do you remember Dynamo's victories against Spartak? Do you know how important those victories were for Dynamo and Ukraine?

- Yes, I remember them very well and I knew exactly how important they were, because I talked to President Ihor Surkis before the match.

- By the way, what was your relationship with Ihor Surkis?

- He was my mentor and trusted my style of play.

- Do you have any contact with anyone from the club now? Maybe you congratulate each other on your birthdays?

- No, we don't communicate with anyone anymore.

- Do you remember your conflict in the 2008 Ukrainian Cup final with Volodymyr Yezerskyi?

- To be honest, not very well. It was something like I was in a hurry and wanted to continue the game, but he didn't let me, we got into a fight. I can say for sure that after the match we talked and came to an understanding.

- Do you regret that it happened?

- I wouldn't say that. Such things can happen in football, because the game is about adrenaline. We quickly calmed down as if nothing had happened.

- In 2008, you were ranked sixth in the ranking of the best strikers in Africa after Drogba, Adebayor and Eto'o. Who do you think is the best African forward in history?

- In my opinion, Eto'o is the best in the history of African football.

- You were fined 4.5 million euros by FIFA and received a suspension. What was the reason for that?

- It happened because I signed a contract with Nantes when my current deal with the club from Dubai did not end.

- How did that story end?

- I was suspended for five months, but in the end, everything went back to normal. I would not like to talk about the fine in more detail.

- In 2014, there was information that you could continue your career in Russia. Is it true?

- I don't know anything about it, it was probably just a rumor.

- Do you follow the situation in Ukraine?

- Yes, of course. I watch the news every day, and it touches me deeply and makes me very sad. It even upsets my eight-year-old son. He often prays before going to bed that calm and peace will return to your country. Now I wish success to the Ukrainian national team at Euro 2024. Many of my good friends work there, and I was happy to hear the news of Ukraine's first victory and wish it further success!

Kirill Krutorogov