Alexander Shovkovsky: «In the second half of the first half we dropped a bit»

The head coach of Kyiv's "Dynamo" Alexander Shovkovsky summarized today's match of his team with Kovalivka's "Koloss" (1:1) in the 15th round of the Ukrainian championship on the YouTube channel "UPL TV".

— What is the main reason for today’s result?

— First of all, we didn’t convert the moments we had. And we had moments... At the end of the second half, both Buyalsky and Brazhko and Voloshin should have scored. Sometimes it happens that the ball just doesn’t go into the net.

Of course, we are disappointed. But whatever it is, life goes on. We need to prepare for the next match, which is very important for us.

— Do you have any complaints about the team’s defense?

— In the second half of the first half, we dropped a bit. During the break, we made certain comments to the guys. In the second half, we increased our speed and tried to create pressure through the flanks. There were some good moments. But that’s football.

— The team dropping in the second half of the first half, could this perhaps be a consequence of rotation?

— I can’t say that. We lost confidence. One mistake leads to another—everything comes together from such moments. We scored a goal at the beginning of the match and then completely dominated; there was one team on the field. And then these individual mistakes affected the psychological state of the players and the team as a whole. Individual skill is a component that needs to be worked on and improved constantly, but it’s not easy.

— You kept Guerrero on the field for a long time. Did you believe he would show himself, or were you conserving Vanat’s strength?

— In our team, all players must prove the validity of their claims for a spot in the starting lineup when they step onto the field. We can’t play with the same 11 players. It’s impossible. Especially in the schedule we are currently working with.

— Why was Shaparenko not in the match squad today?

— Unfortunately, he has a cold and could not prepare for the match. We needed to conserve him for the upcoming matches.

Text transcription — Dynamo.kiev.ua, when using the material hyperlink is mandatory!