Oleg Salenko: "Vanat needs to be more persistent in looking for chances. And he needs to shoot on goal like Brazhko did"

Former Dynamo Kyiv forward Oleh Salenko commented on his former team's 0-2 defeat to German side Hoffenheim in yesterday's Europa League match of the 2nd round of the main stage.

- "Dynamo has no team play - and this is a very unpleasant conclusion after this match, " Salenko said. " I did not expect Hoffenheim, a team currently ranked 16th in the current German championship, to demonstrate such a well-coordinated team play - in contrast to what Dynamo showed.

Valeriy Lobanovsky taught us that the team must act as a whole, and, what is very important, in the direction of the opponent's goal. And not only did Dynamo not create anything up front, except for Brazhko's great shot under the crossbar, but they also failed in defense. On the other half of the field, the White and Blues were catastrophically acting one-on-one - not a single successful episode, not a single aggravation.

- Who is to blame for the two goals conceded?

- Not only the defenders, and not only the center backs, but also the midfielders in the center of the field were underperforming. The central triangle near our penalty area was ineffective... And what is quite unpleasant is that Hoffenheim almost stopped after making it 2-0, but Dynamo could not do anything in this situation.

- What did Vanat do on the field, and why was the White and Blues' attack so helpless?

- Vanat needs to be more persistent in looking for chances. If he can't be put into a striking position, then he should at least take more shots on goal. To shoot like Brazhko did. In addition, I don't understand why Guerrero was bought... Either he shouldn't have been brought into the team, or show this striker in action - that is, from the first minutes, in a responsible and difficult Europa League match!

- How did the absence of Yarmolenko and Buyalsky affect Dynamo's game?

- In the match against Hoffenheim, their absence was critical... They are thinking players who create. Yes, they do not run very well, but in terms of creativity they are very important. At least for the second half, or even for a shorter period, they would have been enough, and Dynamo's game would have been more intelligent.

- What do you think of Shaparenko's performance?

- He was out of the game... He absolutely did not get into the pace of this match. Shaparenko might have been of some use if Yarmolenko and Buyalsky had played next to him. Yes, the Germans would have shut someone down, but one of them would have created something useful.

- How timely were Dynamo's substitutions, and what did the exit of Pikhalenko and Guerrero do?

- It didn't. Guerrero, as far as I remember, managed to receive the ball twice... I can't say anything about Pikhalenko in this match at all. Now we need to do a debriefing - there will be a pause in the national team match, so there will be time. There is too much contrast between Dynamo's performances in the Ukrainian league and the Europa League. Something is not working...

- Are two defeats at the start of this stage of the European Cup a critical indicator? And what to do next in terms of strategy?

- Dynamo has a lot of problems. I believe that we need to renew the team, involve even more young people. And it will happen, I'm sure. And whoever doesn't want to play - out! The remaining Europa League matches are a great opportunity for young people to gain experience.

Oleg Semenchenko