Renowned Belarusian coach Oleh Dulub commented on Dynamo’s victory over Shakhtar in the Ukrainian Cup round of 16.
— Oleh Anatoliyovych, can the first Classic of the 2025/26 season be considered successful? How do you view today’s match in Kyiv in terms of tension and level of play?
— This is a difficult question for me because it is worth understanding that the game consists of two halves. If the intensity and emotions of the second half were present in the first half, then we could 100% say the Classic was successful.
However, it’s also important to consider the calendar factor that Dynamo and Shakhtar have. They played last Thursday, then on Sunday, today on Wednesday, and the next direct game will be on Sunday. Between the first two matches, there’s a two-day break, but now before the Classic in the UPL, there will be three days of rest. In this schedule, the most challenging is the third game that took place today.
Perhaps, because of this, the first half didn’t succeed. But speaking generally, considering the intensity of the second half, I saw a fairly good level of play.
— Let’s analyze the game of both teams.
— Let’s start with Shakhtar as a sign of respect for the match guests. The first half was quite good. I liked the tactical setup of the Miners, how they overloaded the right flank and transferred the ball to the left, where Egineldo joined in.
Shakhtar used the space behind Popov and Mykhailik very well in the first half: constant openings and entries into the spaces behind. They also completely blocked Mykhailik’s main virtue — the first pass, forcing Dynamo to start attacks through Popov.
— What happened to Shakhtar in the second half?
— For me, the turning point is the episode in the 54th minute of the match. When on the left flank, there was an intense battle between Vivcharenko and Neverton. This energy probably spread to all other Dynamo players, charging them. The Kyiv team started to play.
— Let’s go into more detail about the play of Shovkovskyy’s team.
— The substitutions were key here. First of all, it was Boryachko’s entry instead of Mykhailenko at the start of the second half. After his appearance, the triangulation of Boryachko-Pikhalyonok-Buialskyi immediately worked in Dynamo. Boryachko shot from outside the penalty area, Pikhalyonok also made three shots which led to corners, which were taken by Buialskyi. On the third time, Boryachko got to the ball, shot, and Guerrero was there for the rebound to score the winning goal.
Dynamo players used the flanks well. We also can’t overlook the average age of the teams. The difference is three years in favor of Dynamo: 26.8 against 23.5. If we look at the players, it was the experience of Yarmolenko (36), Buialskyi (32), Karavaiev (32), and Pikhalyonok (28) that played their role. It was thanks to this experience that the course of the match, which was frankly unfavorable for Dynamo, could be turned around, considering the first half and the goal conceded at the start of the second half.
— How do you generally assess Shovkovskyy’s decision to use Yarmolenko as the spearhead of the attack? It’s the second game in a row that Andrii scores while playing in this position.
— It should be understood that Blenuce currently does not reach the level of Dynamo. Like in Sholo’s case, his adaptation period is dragging on. And Guerrero is a player who works well in open space.
In the match with Kryvbas (4:0), the use of Yarmolenko in the spearhead of the attack was really needed. The Dynamo staff probably understood that Kryvbas would defend with a low block, acting on counterattacks. And it is precisely in the narrowed space that Yarmolenko and Buialskyi play well.
Regarding the match with Shakhtar, it seemed to me that at first, it would be better to release Guerrero in this position, who could use the space behind Shakhtar’s defenders. While Yarmolenko would play in his usual position on the right flank of the attack, and on the left, Kabaiev would act instead of Ogundana. But this is my understanding of the situation, as I am not in the Dynamo staff.
However, the way Shovkovskyy handled this situation is indeed a great decision. Ultimately, it was the two forwards who scored — Yarmolenko and Guerrero.
Vladyslav Lyutostansky