— Dynamo supposedly started the spring part of the season well, winning against Karpaty, but then lost points against Vorskla, had a hard-fought victory over LNZ thanks to an unfortunate own goal by Putri, and now a draw with Zorya, with the condition that just ten minutes into the match the Kyiv team was losing 1:2. What is happening with Dynamo? Have they prematurely hung gold medals on the team?
— Well, I don't know who hung them. Let me just say this — all sober specialists know what a gap of 36 points, which the team had since the beginning of the championship, means. Anything can happen — injuries to footballers, etc. Given the transfer season that Dynamo has been conducting over the past five years, one can say this — the club is simply running out of bullets, for objective reasons. Relying on U-19 footballers is a utopia, self-deception. Especially considering the level of the U-19 championship of Ukraine. It is currently simply impossible to develop footballers there. Even in European competitions, when U-19 youth plays, Kyivans are usually one and a half to two years older than everyone else. And still, we have problems there.
Currently, Dynamo is experiencing a very large crisis moment; there is a lack in everything. I’m not going to criticize the club management, the president; the situation has developed in such a way that there are no free funds that could be allocated for transfers; the club's budget is under stress. Which naturally reflects on the players. Footballers are not fools either. They see that there is no competition for them, the club is not buying anyone, and there is no pressure from below. From this, certain psychological nuances arise. Plus, the races ‘point for point’ — despite the 10-point gap, I believe Shakhtar will manage, and in the final stretch everything will be very even. The Ukrainian fan will still get some adrenaline, as psychology kicks in; Dynamo has experienced players, and from round to round, every match for the Kyivans will be like the last. Whether the management, head coach, or president can concentrate the team — time will tell. And the pause with the national team provides a chance to heal all wounds.
The situation is completely different with Shakhtar. The club is an absolute favorite in Ukraine in terms of its selection. Look at the players playing there, it is a miracle they are not scoring. It can be said that they are just unlucky, but in terms of their quality, they are gathered into a team that in a year or two will compete with everyone on equal footing in the Champions League. And this is not just my opinion. The fact that Ukrainian clubs are currently buying is a jumble. I don’t know who is pushing these players on them. But this is a matter for the presidents to listen to various advisors, scouts, and all others who speak beautifully.
The only team I would like to mention is Veres. They have a very good coach; I noticed them back in training camps, I managed to watch several of their friendly matches, and I saw that the team has an idea. And naturally, the last match against Polissia, performed by Veres, was simply wonderful; the result speaks for itself. There are no stars there, but the balanced, thoughtful game deserves only compliments. To build a sphere from scratch is something to be skilled at.
— Polissia was called the third force in the Ukrainian championship, but considering how that team lost to Veres, which is in 8th place, there are very serious doubts. What do you say?
— Well, let's start with the fact that there were two teams playing. Veres, I will repeat, looked simply magnificent. On the other hand, I take off my hat to Polissia’s president Hennadiy Butkevych. He moves forward, makes mistakes, but still wants to achieve something. Sooner or later, he will make changes and clean up the ranks. How many sports directors has he already changed? Slava Shevchuk is a good guy. Did he have enough knowledge and understanding of management to build this vertical so that everything functions normally? We will see.
In any case, Polissia’s president has his own plan. He listens to many. At one point, he trusted one group, but something fell apart. Now, his second group has his ear. But somehow, he will come to a result. The main thing is that no sticks are put in his wheels. After all, our Ukrainian mentality interferes: cheating a buddy is sacred. But as an experienced businessman, Butkevych will understand what to do.
So does coach Imad Ashur. Yes, a good guy, but a good guy is not a profession. The result will show everything.
— Let’s return to Shakhtar. After Brest, there appeared hope that the team had broken through, but now, in light of the recent results in the spring part of the championship, we see how everything is reverting to its former state. An unimpressive draw with Kryvbas was followed by an even less convincing, if not disastrous, performance against Karpaty; the exception was a victory over Oleksandriya (which also kept the defense until the 77th minute, and then, after conceding, was forced to open up), and everything started with a pale victory over Lviv. After the match with Karpaty, Marino Pushych said that the championship struggle was over. Did he admit his inability to give the team more? Is it time to part ways with the coach?
— No, that is absolutely the wrong thought. All specialists in Europe heard this and applauded Pushych because he took the heat upon himself and simply wants to calm the team. Apparently, the tensions associated with Shakhtar always playing catch-up are putting enormous pressure on the players. Plus, we must also take into account Shakhtar's mentality, which is Brazilian — there are young players, all the boys are roughly 19-20 years old. They are undoubtedly very talented, and the amounts for which the club buys them speak to that. And such fluctuations are characteristic of their age. Although the boys are Brazilians, they still cannot play balanced football.
Why did Shakhtar part ways with Ukrainians? According to the management of Shakhtar, they are not for big tasks. They inflate the wage bill and free up space for new players; the club plans to balance things with Ukrainians and go along the path that brought this Shakhtar to success. And, in my opinion, this is right. Though I am a Kyivite, a Dynamo fan, I applaud Shakhtar because purely from a football perspective I cannot say that anything is done wrong at the Donetsk club. And I would like Dynamo to be, if only a little, similar to Shakhtar in this regard.
— In the match against Karpaty, in the second half, Shakhtar tactically could not adapt to the game that the Lviv team offered. Plus, Alisson, a 19-year-old newcomer, came in without a single training session, as they say, from ship to bal. Is this a positive moment or does it indicate that the head coach isn’t fully in control of the situation in the team?
— The tactical pattern of this game was very simple. Karpaty concluded after the first round, when they tried to play open football against Shakhtar and ultimately lost 2:5. However, in the last game, they played aggressively balanced, with eight players behind the ball, which led to Shakhtar facing a problem. Shakhtar, especially in the first half, had moments — one-on-one chances and other dangerous situations with half-chances. At that time, in the second half, it visually seemed that Karpaty was biting back. They had moments to counterattack and also chances to score. But this is because Shakhtar went all-in, exposing all their flanks. The teams were playing until the ball was scored; had Karpaty scored, it would have been a white flag. If Shakhtar had conceded, it is not a fact they could have equalized at all. The Donetsk team found themselves in an unfavorable position for them — they took too long to get going and squandered chances, both tactically and psychologically just could not carry the match to the end.
Everyone jumped on Pushych; they criticize him. I will give my opinion. Although I am not a big fan of the Balkan coaching styles, Pushych, for the Ukrainian championship, is an overly intelligent, well-educated coach. With a capital letter. This is his first experience as a head coach, but when I listen to him, I enjoy his reactions and how he works with journalists. This is an example to emulate for our Ukrainian coaches.
As for Alisson being thrown in without a single training session, this is a coaching risk. Pushych simply let this player sniff the gunpowder and also showed that they were waiting for him and counting on him. The coach counted on him because he believed that his Brazilian genetics could allow him to play unconventionally in certain moments. But since he does not fully grasp all the skills needed to organize Shakhtar's game, it did not work out. However, the boy tried; we all saw that he is a worthy football player. He still needs time to adapt; how much is still unknown. We only know that Latin Americans, especially Brazilians, need special conditions to thrive. And Shakhtar, in principle, knows how to create those conditions.
— What are the problematic positions in Shakhtar?
If we talk about Shakhtar’s problems, they are observed in the defensive zone. It is hard to find Brazilians for that position. But one can look for players in other countries, like the Czech Republic; we remember Tomas Hubschman. So, I believe the club is quite capable of finding a strong player who can retrieve and distribute to the Brazilians, and they will score. Meanwhile, the Ukrainians will take care of the defense. One hundred percent, this team has a future.
— Regarding Shakhtar's transfers, besides Alisson, Elias and Arroyo also arrived, but we still do not see their real value for the club. At the same time, three leader Ukrainians — Stepanenko, Zubkov, Sikany — left. How equivalent is such a swap?
— Well, Stepanenko is already 35 years old; he is a veteran player. Although Taras is in good physical shape and ideally suited to Shakhtar's style, the club cannot count on him, as there are also strategic considerations regarding transfer policy. I think Shakhtar acted very well, and Stepanenko had a wonderful career in the Donetsk club, everything is correct.
As for Zubkov and Sikany, Shakhtar got a historical maximum for them. These players cannot be worth more than 3-4 million, and the Donetsk club sold them in bulk for 12 million. Well done, I can only applaud.
As for the newcomers, one just needs to be patient. These guys will adapt and then show themselves in all their glory. They will get used to our dumplings and our varenyky. For Latin Americans, this process takes from six months to a year when they come to their senses in Europe. Everything changes for them here — the climate, friends, and parents are not nearby. But, again, Shakhtar knows how to work with them, and the club has proven this more than once.
— The fact that Ukrainians went so easily to the Turkish championship. There was a time when Shakhtar would not let their players go to the Turkish championship so easily, without much bargaining. Can we say that in the current situation, the decisions of the players are influenced not so much by football reasons, but rather life factors in all respects?
— Look, what is team building and the climate within the team. There is some balance. Perhaps, just an excess of Ukrainians and some internal situations forced the management of the Donetsk club to put these football players on the transfer list and realize them. There are definitely reasons for this. We don’t know how Zubkov behaved in the team, but everyone knows that he is a proud guy. So something may have been off. If the club easily gets rid of such players, it is not without reason, as we do not know everything. In Europe, there is a concept of chemistry in the locker room. Perhaps this balance was disturbed, and coaches and specialists felt this and decided to adjust the locker room.
Regarding non-football factors, I would say that both fans and journalists are used to seeing the situation in a somewhat skewed mirror. After all, they do not know what the football players are living with, what they think. Players, when moving to another club, kiss its emblem. This is purely a performance. A footballer is a professional who works for money. And everyone is guided by only one thing — my term in football is very short, and I have to maximize my earnings for what I give my health. The same Brazilians come here not for free; their fees are very high for them to be at Shakhtar, especially at a time like now.
Ukrainian footballers, of course, are solidary with everything happening, but even in this situation, their minds are turned towards business. Yes, they are patriotic, but they are professionals; they earn money.
Overall, football should be viewed as a business. All of Europe works to qualify for European cups and be in the show, to earn money. No one wants to throw it to the wind.
In the Ukrainian championship, this does not work due to the political situation, but even if it were stable, our football does not correspond to this show. How many stadiums do we have that meet the level of European cups? Four or five for the entire country. As a native Kyivite, I have great respect for the V. Lobanovskyi Stadium. But can one really watch a show at this stadium?
I have been living in the Czech Republic for many years. Just two or three years ago, Czechs were far behind Ukrainian clubs. As soon as the fees for competitions increased, the Czechs appreciated it as a business and began to invest. And though the Czech stadiums are small, just look at how they organize shows there, as is done in Poland. And our television cannot produce a product, a picture, from our stadiums. The latest example — Karpaty dragged Shakhtar to the Ukraina stadium. What to expect from there if there is essentially no lighting at this stadium? I won’t even mention the field — it’s some kind of sludge.
— A little more about football itself. Oleksandriya is currently demonstrating good stability, coupled with results, scoring a lot. Although it would seem that everyone has already studied this team. What is the reason for this success, and do the players and coaching staff understand how to withstand the pressure that increases with each round?
— I had the honor of working with Ruslan Rotan here in the Czech Republic. I know this person personally, his qualities, his views on football, his attitude toward football. Ruslan has one particular feature — he knows how to create a microclimate and a balanced working situation, which makes the footballers believe in him and train with great enthusiasm. This is the engine of all Oleksandriya's successes. While it cannot be said that there are super talented footballers with astronomical prices there. It is a balanced team.
At the same time, I observe Ruslan Rotan's growth as a coach and am glad that he is abandoning some ideas while maintaining others. The strength of Oleksandriya is in the locker room, in spirit. Ruslan has managed to become a coach. That is the most important thing.
— It cannot be overlooked that Rotan's Oleksandriya can play against teams that usually "dry" the game. The match with Obolon demonstrated this once again. What is the secret to this?
— There are no identical coaches. It is impossible to copy the football of, say, Guardiola, Mourinho, Klopp, or someone else, as the playing style of a team is built around specific players who are in the club. A decent specialist has his style in building and organizing a game. In my opinion, Ruslan is moving towards his style, and I believe that he is already cutting through his style, which is unlike anyone else, considering the players at his disposal.
I applaud Ruslan; I am glad he is in the squad and am confident he will still terrorize everyone until the last rounds of the championship.
Vyacheslav Zakhovaillo