Former midfielder of «Chernomorets», «Dnipro», Ternopil’s «Niva» and «Mykolaiv», and now coach Yuri Kulish shared his opinion on the latest events in the current championship of Ukraine.
Yuri Kulish— Before the start of the spring part of the championship, many experts confidently stated that the champion would be «Dynamo». However, should we only rely on the remote competition with the eternal rival — «Shakhtar»?
— Of course not. Football is unpredictable, and I would not make predictions regarding the championship with such certainty. After all, looking at the ten-point difference that has formed between «Dynamo» and «Shakhtar», various factors must be considered. One of them lies in the quality of play and aspirations of these two competitors. Personally, I tend to believe that despite the loss of points, «Shakhtar» currently looks more convincing than the Dynamo players. But in «Dynamo»’s mechanism, not everything is as fine-tuned as one would like. This was also shown in the matches of this calendar year in the championship.
The Kyiv team does not exhibit the resilience they previously had; points are being gained with significant effort. If the Dynamo players do not approach the next nine rounds maximally mobilized and do not step up their performance, it is quite possible that not only «Shakhtar» will close the gap but also «Alexandria» may emerge from hiding. A few rounds can fundamentally change the situation. This could indeed play a nasty trick on Alexander Shovkovsky's team. If «Alexandria» catches up with them, psychology will come to the forefront. In such a situation, I agree, it will not be the best for the Dynamo players. On the contrary, it will be favorable for the Alexandrians.
— What impressions do you have from the matches involving the leaders?
— Credit must be given to «Zarya» and «Karpaty», who fought desperately for results in their games against «Dynamo» and «Shakhtar». In matches of this nature, it is not so much about high technical skill as it is about will, dedication, fighting qualities, and successful tactics. All of this was present in the mentioned matches for the Lugansk and Lviv teams.
As for «Alexandria», this team managed to comfortably handle «Obolon», beating them with a large score. Ruslan Rotan has managed to create a battle-ready collective that stands out for its stability and proves its competitiveness with each season. In my opinion, the Alexandrians have every reason to claim one of the sets of awards. However, what kind it will be — time will tell.
— One of the surprises of the round was the large victory of «Veres» over «Polesie» — 5:1. Did you expect such a turn of events?
— There are surprises in football, but I certainly did not expect such an outcome. One could only predict a victory by a minimal score or a draw. However, such things do happen. One can say one thing about this match: it was clearly not «Polesie’s» day.
What led to such a defeat — underestimating the opponent on the part of Zhytomyr players or a series of circumstances? I think there was certainly no underestimation, as «Veres» had shown in previous games in Rivne that any Premier League club should take them into account. Most likely, the Rivne team was more motivated to achieve a positive result. This is one of those cases when you can say: «Appetite comes with eating». It seems that «Veres» found inspiration, and its players are gradually acquiring the psychology of winners. As for «Polesie», no one expected such a resounding defeat.
— The return of Ruslan Kostiushyn to the coaching bridge of «Koloss» is associated by the club's management with improving tournament results. Meanwhile, the Kovalyvka team has fallen into the relegation playoff zone this spring...
— One can imagine the level of responsibility that lies on Ruslan Kostiushyn right now. In a short period, he must try to fundamentally change the team’s play, inject new energy into it. It is clear that making such changes in four to five days, which is how long he has worked with «Koloss» after the dismissal of his predecessor, is quite difficult. Therefore, it should come as no surprise that the Kovalyvka team lost away to LNZ. True, at a score of 0:1, they were looking for chances at the opponent's goal, but a grave mistake by goalkeeper Ivan Pakholyuk changed everything. After that, it became clear that it would be very hard for the guests to earn at least one point. And so it happened.
— The match between the outsiders, «Inhulets» and «Chernomorets», drew increased interest. In this encounter, dubbed a six-point game, did the «sailors» lose predictably?
— This is one of those cases where it is said: «The winner was the one who wanted it more». «Inhulets» found itself in a situation where it needs to earn points by any means possible to maintain its chances of staying in the Premier League. If in December the team from Petrovo was predicted to part ways with the elite, now skeptics have quieted down somewhat. Vasyl Kobin’s team has managed to secure two victories in four matches of the spring segment — and that means a lot. If in the postponed match against «Zarya» «Inhulets» manages to keep the winning score, a good perspective opens up for them.
As for «Chernomorets», it is very disappointing. The Odessa team has started losing points too frequently, gradually sinking into a dangerous zone. It would be very sad if Odessa were to lose its place in the Premier League again. However, there are still opportunities to rectify the situation, and it is important to skillfully utilize them. How the Odessa club will do this — it is hard to say.
— What do you associate the unstable game of «Rukh», which lost to «Vorskla» at home, with?
— There can be no two opinions on this. We all remember well how in the depth of winter, news emerged about the merger of two Lviv clubs. What this was about — personally, I still do not fully understand, but the fact remains: four leading players moved from «Rukh» to «Karpaty», who are members of various national teams of Ukraine. It is clear that such significant personnel losses could not fail to impact the game. That is why «Rukh» has stalled even more. It is a pity, as last season everyone observed its play with delight, predicting the team a great future. So, it is all the more disappointing that it is gradually losing its previous appeal.
Regarding «Vorskla», I can say that the victory in Lviv is very important for them. It not only slightly distanced the team from the relegation playoff zone but also should have instilled confidence in their own abilities.
Vyacheslav Kulchytsky
