Today, August 5, in Polish Lublin, Dynamo will play its first match of the third qualifying round of the Champions League against Cypriot Paphos. Roman Bezus, a former midfielder of the Ukrainian national team, who played in Cyprus for Omonia over the last three seasons, shared his expectations for this match and some details about the strength of Kyiv’s opponent.
Roman Bezus. Photo: V. Rasner
- Roman, ahead of Dynamo is a match against Paphos. Overall, how do you assess the chances of the teams to reach the Champions League playoff round?
- I believe that for me Dynamo is the favorite of this confrontation. Yes, Paphos became the champion last season, and they have some good players, but the Ukrainian team has a good chance to progress to the next round.
- It is clear that Kyivans, like all domestic teams, are playing their European matches on neutral grounds. And Paphos is a home team at all?
- It should be noted that the Cypriots also do not play at their stadium in Paphos, which does not meet UEFA standards, but in Limassol. But to answer the question, essentially, it doesn’t matter for them whether it’s a home arena or away. Moreover, they gather a small audience in their home ground.
- Paphos became the champion of Cyprus. Was everything expected?
- Basically, yes. By the way, they had a good chance to win the Cup, but in the final, they lost on penalties to AEK.
- For Paphos, in its short history (the club has been operating under this name since 2014), this is the first triumph. Are big money being invested in this club by the owners?
- Indeed, at the moment, this is probably the richest Cypriot team. It’s enough to say that just recently, a super-modern training base was built in Paphos. They buy good players. For example, recently, Paphos signed the famous Brazilian defender David Luiz, and he hardly came for a small salary (smiles).
- Do they want to make this club the most elite in Cyprus?
- Yes. Paphos, in terms of financial investments, is probably the strongest right now. Only Aris can compete with them.
- Who is the main star of Paphos among the veterans?
- It was the Brazilian Jairo. But the forward changed teams during the offseason. He was among the top scorers in the championship for the last three to four seasons. However, Paphos had a replacement prepared for him. Anderson Silva, who mostly came on as a substitute before, scored quite a few important goals last season. Also, attention should be paid to the Portuguese midfielder Pepe, who was named the best player in Cyprus last season according to PASS. I would also like to mention the Croatian winger Mislav Orsic.
- What is the playing principle of this team?
- Paphos has quite a few good players individually. The team can skillfully waste time if they need to. But I would call this team cheeky. The players constantly hang on you, shove, and often act on the verge of provocation. And not once has this helped them. In the last championship, we won against them - 3:0. And that is because we played in their style, more aggressively, from a position of strength. The opponent felt uncomfortable, and they couldn’t handle it.
It’s worth noting that Paphos was not stronger than Maccabi in the last qualifying round. Yes, in the return match, they scored the needed goal in the first half, but throughout the second half of the game, despite having the numerical advantage, they defended.
- What is your prediction for this match, which will take place in Polish Lublin?
- If Dynamo can take control of the ball, especially in the midfield, there should be no significant problems. But if the Kyivans get bogged down in the struggle, Paphos will be able to impose their game with fast flanks and a strong, quick striker who knows how to finish crosses.
- The score?
- I’m not an expert on this matter (smiles). I bet on Dynamo winning by two goals.
- Finally, I wanted to ask, how are you doing?
- After the season ended, my contract with Omonia finished, and now I am looking for a new club. That’s all I can say for now.
Sergiy Demyanchuk
