The head coach of “Dynamo U-19” Ihor Kostyuk commented on the victory of his charges over “Obolon” (7:0) in today’s youth championship match.
Ihor Kostyuk. Photo — fcdynamo.com— It seemed that your team did everything well on the field today. Are you completely satisfied with the actions of your players?
— Today, there was both good game content and a positive result. We corrected the mistakes that were made in previous matches, which is why we achieved a convincing victory. If it weren’t for the goalkeeper of the opposing team, we could have scored more. I am glad that our forwards scored, plus there was a good balance in all lines.
— The first two goals came from attacks down the left flank. Did you identify a weak spot in the opponent?
— We always ask players that when the opponent has a dense defense, and many players are closing down in the middle, it’s more effective to play through the flanks. And today, that’s exactly what brought us our first goals.
— Kremchanyn scored a double, he is one of the two top scorers in the championship. In your opinion, is he a player who is already fully ready for adult football?
— Dima is a leader of our team, a stable player, and has good finishing skills. He is one of those players who takes initiative in difficult moments and scores important goals at crucial times.
— Lusin scored a spectacular goal. Do you instruct him to shoot from distance more often, or are such goals rather improvised by the players?
— We talk to the players that when the ball is in immediate proximity to the penalty area in the middle zone, they should shoot at the goal whenever possible. There were a few moments for Pavlo today when he tried to dribble past the opponent but ended up losing the ball. But we advised him that in that zone, he shouldn’t be dribbling opponents, but should either pass the ball or take a shot or pass it to the flank. He corrected this and then scored his goal.
— The effective substitutions seem to have maintained the team’s morale and desire to push forward despite the score becoming lopsided. After all, the players who came on as substitutes also scored goals...
— I always tell the players that they shouldn’t stop, no matter what the score is. We play our game, create moments, prepare for quick counterattacks on our goal, and today it worked out — the defenders were ready to handle quick attacks on our goal, didn’t allow them to create, and the players coming on as substitutes added freshness and creativity. Thanks to this, we played aggressively up front and scored our goals. As I said, our forwards scored — both Fedya and Motya, which can only please us.
— Ahead is a key match in the final part of the season against “Shakhtar.” What thoughts do you have approaching this game, how will you motivate the team?
— For us, all matches are decisive — against “Shakhtar,” “Chornomorets,” and “Koloss.” All remaining matches before the end of the season are crucial. There isn’t one particular game that stands out. So, we move forward gradually, we will prepare for the match against “Shakhtar,” and then continue to the end of the championship.
