Former Ukraine and Werder Bremen defender Viktor Skrypnyk shared his expectations for the second-round match of the main stage of the Europa League between Hoffenheim and Dynamo Kyiv.
- Viktor Anatoliyovych, who is your favorite in the Hoffenheim-Dynamo match? The bookmakers believe that this is a German club, but after what I saw in their match against Werder Bremen...
- I watched it too. Hoffenheim's performance was very inexpressive, to put it mildly. The team was leading by three goals until the 12th minute, I was spitting and thinking about turning off the TV. And then a red card for their defender in the 18th minute and they ended up losing 3-4.
For them, this is a serious defeat for which they will try to rehabilitate themselves in front of their fans. Therefore, Werder's victory over Hoffenheim is not good for Dynamo, because the team is irritated and angry. They have had a very poor start to the new season in the Bundesliga, with only one win in five matches. However, answering the question, my favorite in this game is still Hoffenheim.
- In what ways is Pellegrino Matarazzo's team stronger than Oleksandr Shovkovskyi's?
- "Hoffenheim plays in the Bundesliga, one of the strongest championships in Europe. There are no easy matches here. Every team, even an outsider, can trip you up, every victory is not easy, especially for teams like Hoffenheim, because it's not a German grande dame like Bayern Munich or Borussia Dortmund. This team does not have star players, but the squad is balanced. And, like it or not, the match will take place on their territory - in Sinsheim. And this is also an additional advantage for them, because it is not known how comfortable Dynamo got to Germany.
Someone might say that these are all excuses, like an alibi for Kyiv in case of defeat. I don't agree, because I remember how Vorskla and I spent almost a day on the border on a bus in the 2022/23 season. We arrived at nine in the morning and only left at 21:00... This definitely does not give the players strength. I would look at the reaction of the players of European teams if their clubs had the same logistics as Ukrainian ones.
- How can Dynamo hope for an acceptable result in the match against Hoffenheim? It's one thing to crush Left Bank (3-0) and quite another when the White and Blues conceded three goals to Lazio in the first half of the opening round of the UEFA Champions League.
- You know, if I analyze Dynamo's game against Lazio, I didn't notice that Kyiv lost to the Romans in all respects. No. As for me, everything was decided because of the slightly better performance of the Italian club's players, who realized almost all their chances. That's all.
In my coaching practice, this also happened. For example, with Zorya against Roma (0: 3, 0: 4) or Braga (1: 2, 0: 2), when the opponents made the most of their chances. I especially remember the game against Rapid, we lost 0-3 (Europa League playoffs, 2021/22 season). After the match, I watched it and... We ran and jumped more, and they had a half-chance - a goal, and we had zero.
- So what was the reason for Kyiv's failures?
- "Dynamo should have scored in the match against Lazio, but now the skill of the Kyiv club's players is such that they need several moments to score a goal. Dynamo has a game, a pattern. The team strengthened qualitatively in the offseason for the first time in many seasons, really qualitatively, and not just to buy someone who then goes on loan to play. Pikhalenok, Rubchynskyi, Bragaru - everyone is ready to play right away, without any swinging.
Now Shovkovskyi needs to work with his players on one component - on realization, and that's it. I saw in the match against Lazio that Dynamo's players had a desire, everyone tried, they didn't pretend to be actors, that is, they didn't pretend to play, but really played with their hearts, but...
You know, it's very easy to criticize when you're sitting in the stands or in front of the TV, but you shouldn't throw shit in the fan. "In the match against Hoffenheim, Dynamo needs to make the opponent make mistakes and play even more aggressively.
- Should Shovkovskyi change his team's tactics in general? For example, to release two forwards...
- I'm not sure if we should do that. Dynamo, again, has a well-established game. If they start changing something up front, there may be problems down the line. Of course, I'm not Dynamo's head coach, but that's my opinion.
- Regarding the strengthening of Dynamo. In your opinion, will Eduardo Guerrero be able to play in Shovkovskyi's team, given his hot temper? It was said that the Panamanian once almost had a fight with former Zorya coach Valerii Kryventsov. And with Yuriy Koval and his teammates at the Luhansk club, it seems that something was not going well with him.
- Only time will tell. And the character... We all have our quirks. All good players, I'll tell you this, each with cockroaches in their heads. We need to find the right approach to Guerrero and I think he will really be a good addition to Dynamo's attacking potential. Eduardo has enough experience. He has played at the UPL level, in European competitions, and in the Israeli championship. He is a top striker for the Ukrainian league.
- Is Dynamo's weakest link today the defense?
- After the 0-3 loss to Lazio, it is, of course, very easy to criticize. We are all very smart after the game. "Dynamo has not conceded three goals in every match this season. So I will say this: I am sure that the match with the Romans was well analyzed and the coaching staff pointed out their mistakes to the players, and the players, in turn, understood them.
Such games are also necessary for young players, for example, Dynamo's central defender (Mikhavka). If you're not a fool, and I'm sure Dynamo doesn't keep such people, then every game in European competitions only toughens you up, regardless of the result. Players become mentally stronger. Mikhavka is a good reference point for this. I'm talking about Ilya Zabarnyi, who didn't stay at Dynamo for long, but after going through the crucible of European competitions, he went to play in the Premier League.
- Let's move away from the topic of the upcoming match with Hoffenheim. Do you believe in the coaching talent of Oleksandr Shovkovskyi? Will SaSho, as the fans call the Kyiv coach, be able to bring the gold back to Kyiv?
- When Shovkovskyi first took over Dynamo after Lucescu, there was an immediate reaction in the team, let's just say. Mircea had been at the helm of the White and Blues for almost three full seasons. Perhaps his tactics, his vision of football, somehow bored Dynamo players. There was some "tension" within the team. Often a change of coach gives a qualitative impetus. For some reason, it didn't work out that way with Metalist 1925...
Oleksandr is, without exaggeration, a Dynamo legend. He knows everything in the club. Shovkovskyi has a good aura, he is not one of those who talks just to talk, but one of those who shows everything in practice, on the football field.
As for me, Dynamo is the main contender for UPL gold medals this season.
- And finally. What is Viktor Skrypnyk's prediction for the Hoffenheim vs Dynamo match?
- I will, of course, support Dynamo. It is very important that the White and Blues win points for Ukraine in the UEFA rankings. What will the score be? I don't really like to predict, but I will say that Kyiv will win 2-0. They have to come out calmly on the field, forget about the defeat against Lazio, and everything will be fine. Dynamo are quite capable of defeating Hoffenheim.
Viktor Hlukhenkyi