Today, January 21, there will be a Europa League match between «Galatasaray» and «Dynamo». Former Dynamo player Volodymyr Sharan shared his expectations for the game.
— Everyone who supports «Dynamo» (and there are many people, as it has always been and still is a national team) primarily expects a good game. But the most important thing is that we all want to be assured that we are capable of winning or at least not losing. I would like to play at a high level in this match.
— How do you see the course of events in the match against «Galatasaray»?
— It’s hard to say. At the moment, «Dynamo» has only played friendly matches without having any official games. On the contrary, «Galatasaray» plays them regularly in the Turkish championship. Therefore, it will be very difficult for Dynamo in this regard. After all, no official match can be replaced with friendlies. I believe that the frenzied support of the «Galatasaray» fans will influence the events at the Istanbul stadium. And I hope the Dynamo players are psychologically ready for this. In this match, they should feel relaxed, as they should not feel any pressure regarding the tournament significance.
I hope that there will be no more experiments in this match. I mean, when there were earlier experiments regarding logistics and involvement in matches in the national championship. At that time, the Dynamo coaching staff had to vary the squad and even schemes. So I hope that today there will be a combat-ready squad and the Kyiv team will play with their usual tactical scheme. To be honest, I am looking forward to this match.
— What do you think is the most important thing for the Dynamo coaching staff in this game — to fight for the club's prestige or to prepare for the championship matches through European Cup matches?
— First of all, Dynamo need to show their face, as the team is at an unusual last place in the main round of the Europa League standings. So there can be no two opinions on this matter — of course, to fight for the club's prestige. After all, «Dynamo» is «Dynamo». Everyone understands well that for our grand team, a victory means a lot. It is both the prestige of the club and the reputation of each team member without exception.
— In the match against «Galatasaray», the leading players — Denys Popov and Volodymyr Brazhko — will not play. Can their absence affect the character of Dynamo's actions?
— Of course, these are losses. Both are serious players in the «Dynamo» squad. Popov plays selflessly in the central defense zone, and Brazhko is generally an important figure in the defensive zone — the whole game is conducted through him. I don't even know who can replace him in this position. Pikhaylonok? I don’t even know… After all, he prefers to play a bit «higher», as he is a more constructive footballer. However, we will see how the coaching staff decides. As for the defense, perhaps «Dynamo» will again play with three central defenders. It’s hard for me to talk about this, although such changes are quite likely.
Andriy Pisarenko
