The midfielder of Kyiv’s Dynamo, Vladislav Kabaev, shared his impressions from the home match against Donetsk’s Shakhtar (1:1) in the 11th round of the Ukrainian championship.
— We missed such matches, we want to play these kinds of games as often as possible. This was our home match, many people came. I think if it weren’t for the restrictions, the stadium would have been full. Impressions from the game are mixed, as every time you want to win, especially against a principled opponent like Shakhtar.
And in the moment of the conceded goal, I didn't play through at the corner kick. So, the impression from the match was somewhat blurred. But I thank the team, which did not give up and fought until the end. We showed that we have character, I think the fans liked the game. I’ll repeat, I would like as many such matches as possible. For example, when we played in Europe against Roma, the pace of the game was noticeably higher, it was also very interesting to play against Shakhtar. This is a good opponent, we have something to fight for because we know what task lies ahead of us.
— The match turned out to be emotional and spectacular. What did you feel when at the beginning of the meeting the ball hit the crossbar, and in another moment you had to clear the ball off the line?
— Of course, matches with Shakhtar are always very tense. Even when our coach Oleksandr Shovkovskyi was a player, there were many red cards and fights in matches against this opponent. The same goes for when Yarmolenko played before he left Dynamo. So people expect this match, and we were waiting for it.
There was also a red card today, and fouls, and many bright moments. No one wanted to lose, everyone understood who they were playing against. Once again, I thank the guys for not yielding in character. We continue to stay ahead in the standings; we haven't lost anything. But regarding the game, there is much to work on and progress.
— Judging by the starting lineup for the last match against Roma, the priority was given to the game against Shakhtar. Was that decision justified?
— This question should be directed to our head coach. In my opinion, we currently have a squad where there are not eleven main players. I honestly admit that sparks fly at training sessions, everyone wants to play, so it wasn’t a surprise for us that someone played against Roma while someone else played against Shakhtar. Of course, I want to play in every match, both in Europe and in the domestic championship, but the coach knows best. Only time will tell if we made the right decision.
— What do you think about Kryskiv's red card?
— Honestly, I didn’t see that moment, and I haven’t reviewed the video, so I can’t say anything. But I know Kryskiv, and I can say that, in my opinion, he certainly didn’t do it intentionally. It’s just that no one wanted to give in that little duel. I, by the way, also got my lip badly split, but it’s nothing serious, football is a contact sport, so everything is fine. The main thing is that there are no serious injuries.
— Is there any information on how serious the injuries to Bilovar and Popov are?
— Kris seems to feel fine, and Denys seems to have a muscle injury. I don't want to complain, but we do have many trips, complicated logistics, so it seems this is noticeably affecting us. It’s tough to play after such long travels.
— How did you congratulate Oleksandr Karavaev after his goal following his substitution?
— We were all waiting for his appearance on the field, as we knew he is someone you can always expect a goal from when he comes on. He did his job today, for which he deserves great thanks and respect from the whole team in the locker room.