Former footballer and head coach of Dynamo Oleksandr Khatskevych shared his thoughts on the match of the 3rd round of the Europa League against Roma (0:1).
Oleksandr Khatskevych— What thoughts did the match in Rome leave you with?
— I liked that Shovkovskyi changed the scheme, trying something new. Either you change the scheme, or the players. When there is no result, you have to look for ways to achieve it. It is encouraging that the coaching staff of Dynamo is not afraid to try something new.
— Was the decision to hold back the leaders justified?
— Dynamo keeps in mind the match with Shakhtar. The decision to give the players an opportunity to show themselves is completely justified.
— Were you impressed by Roma's game?
— Roma did not impress compared to Dynamo. With the arrival of the new coach, the team continues to search for its identity in terms of player combinations and style. I wouldn't say the team looked confident.
— What can you say about Dovbyk, who had never scored against Dynamo before?
— Personally, I did not notice Artem yesterday in terms of pressuring the defenders. Yes, he was sticking to the ball, trying to shoot with his back to the goal. I will take the liberty to say that Dynamo's defense handled Dovbyk on the level of tactically trained Italian defenders.
— Does the lack of results in European competitions compensate for the experience gained by present-day Dynamo?
— You still need to believe and hope that the team will look great not only in the UPL but also on the European stage. Players must understand that if you are behind technically, tactically, you must be more emotionally charged for each episode, make fewer mistakes, and catch the opponent on them. Roma was not perfect, but the approaches that Dynamo made were not realized. This indicates that the players lack the class and skill to punish the opponent for mistakes. With mere desire and functional readiness, you cannot succeed anymore, like in the old days. A certain level of skill must be present to achieve results in Europe.
— Could the successes in the Champions League qualifiers have led Dynamo players to the psychological illusion that they can compete with everyone?
— Dynamo confidently only passed Partizan, in my opinion. With Rangers, to be honest, the red card helped us in Glasgow. The game with Salzburg was even, but sports luck was on the side of the Austrians.
— Can Dynamo count on a positive result in the upcoming Europa League matches?
— Look, Viktoria has not lost a single game, RFSh, Ferencváros, Sociedad can hardly be called pushovers.
— Will you see what kind of football Oleksandr Shovkovskyi wants to set up for Dynamo?
— In the championship — yes. In the Europa League, I still do not understand what kind of football Dynamo wants to play.
— How to shorten the gap between Ukrainian clubs and opponents on the European stage?
— In our time, the Ukrainian championship was just getting on its feet, but thanks to the intellectual level of the whole team, the skills of the players I played with, it was an order of magnitude higher than the current generation. However it may sound harsh. The results speak for themselves. I know many players of Dynamo, their qualities and level. You need to squeeze the maximum and even more out of yourself in every game. Now the UPL does not give you a clear understanding of what you are truly worth.
