Yesterday, on August 21, Dynamo lost in the first match of the playoff round of the Europa League to Tel Aviv’s Maccabi with a score of 1:3. The former midfielder of the “white-blues” Artem Yashkin shared the reasons for this defeat.
Artem Yashkin
— Artem, as unfortunate as it is to say, Dynamo looked helpless once again on the European stage. Why is that?
— They'll say again that there were many travels, no proper recovery. In principle, that's true, but I saw that the class of Maccabi's players, who also travel a lot across Europe, is not higher than Dynamo’s, and the Kyivans should have closed this game. They started timidly, but when the aggression and speed kicked in, the opponent faltered. Then the team stopped again. Moreover, the referee, in my opinion, unfairly sent off Vivcharenko, thereby breaking the game. And then, while being a man down, we couldn't maintain the draw, beginning to do things that were completely incomprehensible.
— Last season, Dynamo also lost a lot in European competitions, but there was a struggle, you could see at least some effort from the players. Now that is missing.
— It's hard for me to say why this is. But indeed, achieving results without counter-pressing, without aggression is unrealistic.
— It seems that the match against Maccabi once again demonstrated that the Dynamo players are degrading.
— That's true. We just need to find the reasons for these failures. I can't judge since I'm not inside the team, but the fact that the game isn't improving and the quality of actions is low is undeniable. I can only assume that the team lacks motivation. If we end up in the Conference League, that's already good. Maybe someone hasn’t conveyed to the players that they need to play in the Champions League, not in the third strongest European tournament.
— You played under Lobanovskyi, so I wanted to ask: would many players from that team fit in with Valerii Vasylovych?
— With such desire and dynamics, I think no one would. This doesn’t apply to Yarmolenko, who, at 35, was the most eager to fight, as usual lately.
— Is there room for the version that due to the war, players have relaxed, playing essentially without home fans?
— Of course, when you have 50,000 people supporting you, it’s completely different to breathe on the field. But still, I would name the large number of travels as the main problem. This applies to all our clubs that play in Europe.
— But why doesn’t Shakhtar receive as much criticism, demonstrating more or less quality football?
— Where? In the first game against Beşiktaş? In other matches, I didn’t see anything like that.
— But they weren't punching bags?
— Where were they supposed to be punching bags? In the game against Panathinaikos? Come on. Paphos looked much stronger than the Greek team. What kind of football does Shakhtar play? Yes, their defense looks a little more reliable, but upfront, everything is at the expense of individual actions from a few Brazilians.
— However, can Dynamo, with its history, lose without character to teams like Paphos or Maccabi?
— No, of course not. I’ll say more: Maccabi is below the level of Paphos. We didn’t put pressure on the Israelis, and you can see that their defense is weak, as demonstrated in the first 20 minutes of the second half. Often when they lost the ball, the Dynamo players stopped, walking back... I barely finished watching that match. Had it not been for your call, I would have gone to sleep after the first half.
— Did hope not shine after Dynamo equalized, considering how the Kyivans scored their goal?
— That’s what I’m saying. One quick attack, with correct movements, and the ball is in the net. It’s simple.
— Maybe the whole problem lies with the head coach?
— I’m not defending Shovkovskyi, but there’s an analytical department, doctors who know how long players can press for five minutes three times a half. If that’s not possible, one can again mention the constant travels. Based on this, a game plan is developed. However, if a player has character, they must step on the throat of their own song and show a decent game. What was seen in the match against Maccabi was shameful to watch.
— Many specialists say that there was a miscalculation in pre-season preparation. Do you agree?
— It’s hard for me to say. Maybe they played squares throughout the preparation, or maybe they overworked, but the fact remains that the team looks very bad.
— There’s an opinion that some players feel irreplaceable. Vanat, for example, looked much better last season.
— If we take this forward specifically, he played excellently in the UPL. Moreover, in the second half, when there were no significant travels or fatigue.
— Defense is a separate topic?
— One could write a book here. Take that same Karavaev, who made such a pass to the opponent that some midfielders wouldn’t even pass to their forwards. And when you look at the actions of the central defenders, you cry. The team's game depends on defense. When the defense is solid, the midfielders focus more on creating. But if you’re constantly afraid, knowing that there’s a hole in the center of the defense, everyone works looking back. That same Mykhailenko kept falling back as the fifth defender.
— Is there light at the end of the tunnel?
— I don’t want to say any hopeful words, but there’s a return leg, and if the players have at least a bit of dignity, they must pull themselves together. They really need to learn from the defeat, rather than just saying these words and then repeating the same thing. If Dynamo wants to perform in the Europa League, everything must be put on that game.
— Do you believe in a miracle a week from now?
— There will be no miracle if the Kyivans manage to show all their best qualities. Maccabi is capable of overcoming even such Dynamo. At least, with the plan they had in the first game, the team will definitely not play like that again. Perhaps there will be a rotation and a focus on an early goal. How everything turns out, we shall see.
Sergiy Demyanchuk
