On Wednesday, October 30, in the 1/8 finals of the Ukrainian Cup, Kyiv’s “Dynamo” defeated Poltava’s “Vorskla” with a score of 2:1 and advanced to the quarterfinals of the tournament. The match took place in Poltava at the “Vorskla” stadium named after Alexey Butovsky. We present to you the post-match press conference of the head coach of the Poltava team Yuri Maksimov.
Yuri Maksimov. Photo — A. Popov— I wanted a victory, but it is what it is. The guys tried, I think everyone saw it — you can’t fool the fans. Yes, somewhere our players lacked skill, but their desire was sky-high. So thank you to them for the game!
— Can we say that Kane was one of the best on the field today?
— If it were a victory, I would say he was great. But Kane is certainly trying; he is the team leader. However, everyone tried today. I don’t want to single anyone out. We are a team. We win together and lose together.
We were a bit unlucky; the ball didn’t go into the net. But that’s football. Thanks to the team for the game.
Any team would love to have a bench like “Dynamo” has now. But our bench is too short. And the fact that we concede in the last minutes also speaks to the fact that our bench is short. But, I will repeat, the desire of the guys was sky-high, you all saw it.
Everyone wants two lineups. But right now, the situation in our country is such that not everyone can pull off even one lineup. The most important thing is that there is football. The war will end, and I believe our football will be even better than it was before the war. The main thing is for the war to end. And for now, there is a budget that we are counting on. During the winter break, we may invite someone; we need reinforcements because we are fighting for survival.
— What do you think about the refereeing in today’s match?
— Everyone sees everything. We do too. Such a game, and there was no VAR. The referee makes a decision, and it cannot be changed.
Alexander POPOV from Poltava
