Veres Rivne goalkeeper Andriy Kozhukhar shared his expectations for his team's match against Dynamo Kyiv in the 2nd round of the Ukrainian championship and told how he joined his current club from Karpaty Lviv.
Andriy Kozhukhar- Andrii, Veres will face Dynamo this round, who failed to beat Rangers in the Champions League qualifiers. Can this somehow play into your hands?
- "Dynamo has two equivalent squads, so even between European Cup matches they have the opportunity to refresh the base. They have a lot of high-level players. This match will be a test for us.
- Veres already took points from Dynamo in Rivne in the spring - a 1-1 draw at Avangard. Do you have a desire to "bite" the giants again?
- I don't like to get ahead of myself. If we do what the coaching staff asks, we can count on a positive result.
- Can the match against your former team in the opening round be called a successful debut? "Karpaty shared points with Veres in Rivne - zero points each.
- It would have been successful if we had won. It's good that I played for zero, but I wanted to take three points. The coaching staff asked us to play selflessly, with desire. To do what we are asked to do. Many fans came to our match despite the bad weather. It was very nice to play for such an audience.
- Did Veres management inform the players about the tasks for the season?
- Perhaps there was such a meeting before I joined the club, but I didn't catch it. But everything is clear to everyone: the team wants to show the best result and avoid transitional matches.
- What are your hopes for joining Veres?
- For me, it's a chance to gain a foothold in the UPL and progress with the team. I've always wanted to make it as a player at home, in Ukraine.
- How did the option of joining Veres come about? Did you prepare an alternate airfield?
- I don't know all the nuances. I was approached by Veres' sporting director Yuriy Gabovda, who said that there was an opportunity to join Veres. We talked to the management and decided that it would be better for me.
- Did Veres turn out to be the most substantial option for continuing your career?
- There was talk of other teams, but it's no longer relevant.
- You were linked with Sheriff Tiraspol for a very long time. What didn't work out?
- As far as I understand, Sheriff did not find a common language with Karpaty.
- Why did you leave Karpaty?
- They said that the UPL did not count on me.
- Did the initiative come from Myron Markevych?
- I don't know. We did not speak directly with Myron Markevych.
Oleksandr Karpenko
