Some episodes from the biography of famous FC Dynamo players of different generations.
Viktor Kolotov. Born in 1949 in the village of Yudino (Tatarstan). His father was a sergeant in the airborne troops, wounded in the battles for Kyiv in 1944, awarded a combat medal.
Viktor KolotovOur hero grew up at a railway station. At the age of nine, he joined the Yudino children\'s team "Lokomotiv," playing there since 1958.
Viktor Mikhailovich is a deserved master of sports, a midfielder. He played for Kazan\'s "Rubin" and Kyiv\'s "Dynamo." Over 11 seasons at Dynamo, he played 218 matches and scored 62 goals. A five-time champion of the former USSR, a two-time holder of the Cup.
He was included seven times in the lists of "33 best players in the country" (five times as No. 1).
Holder of the Cup Winners' Cup and UEFA Super Cup (1975), silver medalist of the European Championship (1972), bronze medalist of the Olympic Games (1972, 1976). He played 53 matches for the national team, scoring 22 goals.
From the second group to the national team
In professional football from 1968 to 1970, he played for the local "Rubin." His performance at this club in the second group caught the attention of many specialists and earned him an invitation... to the national team of the former USSR.
Thus, for the first time in the history of Soviet football, a representative of the lower league debuted in the main team of the country. On October 26, 1970, 21-year-old Kolotov debuted in a friendly winning match against the national team of Yugoslavia (4:0). He played all 90 minutes and scored a goal. Three weeks later, in a qualifying match for the 1972 European Championship against the national team of Cyprus (3:1), Viktor scored again.
Москва не желала смириться
At the same time, Kolotov caught the eye of nine clubs, including Moscow's CSKA, "Torpid" and Kyiv's "Dynamo". The inexperienced player applied to all three. But after thinking and consulting with his family, the "Rubin" player ultimately chose Kyiv's "Dynamo." The authoritative veteran of the Kyiv team Andrei Andreevich Biba had a certain influence on this decision.
However, Moscow did not accept Viktor's decision lightly. A feuilleton by some Ilya Shatunovsky appeared in "Soviet Sport." And in other Moscow publications, the player was labeled as unprincipled, not matching the moral image of a Soviet athlete...
Officials of the all-Union football federation readily disqualified Viktor Kolotov for a year. But soon the unjust decision was overturned. And on May 6, 1971, the debutant of Kyiv played for the first time in a Dynamo shirt in a home match against "Zarya" (Voroshilovgrad) – 1:0. It was Kolotov who scored the goal.
In the fall, "Dynamo" won the championship gold, and Viktor, with 10 goals in 25 games, became the team's top scorer.
The rookie's game was to the liking of Kyiv fans. He brought great benefit to the team on the field: always managed to help in defense, was good in selection, made accurate passes, and immediately opened up. His moves were always logical, timely, and unexpected. Legends circulated about Kolotov's work ethic.
Triumphant 1975
For five seasons, Viktor was the captain of "Dynamo." On May 14, 1975, in Basel, Switzerland, at the "St. Jakob" stadium, he led his teammates to the final match of the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup. With a score of 3:0, Valery Lobanovsky's team defeated the Hungarian club "Ferencváros" from Budapest. Thus, Dynamo won the first European trophy in the club's history.
On September 9, in Munich, the Kyiv team defeated "Bayern" (1:0) in the first match for the UEFA Super Cup. The Dynamo team also triumphed over the then holder of the European Champions Cup in the return match in Kyiv on October 6 – 2:0. All three goals against the Munich team were scored by Oleg Blokhin.
Kyiv's "Dynamo" also won the national championship that year. They were rightly called one of the strongest teams in the world, and this is largely due to Viktor Kolotov.
One time journalists asked Viktor Mikhailovich if he regretted his decision to play in Kyiv rather than in Moscow? The taciturn and modest outstanding performer replied: "Time has confirmed the correctness of my choice. But probably, the results speak more convincingly than any words. My teammates and I have achieved something"…
Kolotov managed to work as a coach. He was an assistant in his native "Dynamo," led "Prikarpattia" (Ivano-Frankivsk), and the youth national team of Ukraine.
A genius footballer, a bright person, a beloved player of Dynamo fans left this life, unfortunately, very early at the age of 50. He is buried in Kyiv at the Lisovoye Cemetery.
Alexander LIPENKO for Dynamo.kiev.ua
