Coach of «Dynamo U-19» Ihor Kostiuk commented on the victory of his players over «Shakhtar U-19» (3:2) in the framework of the National U-19 League.
Ihor Kostiuk (photo: fcdynamo.com)— What are your emotions after this incredible victory?
— Of course, these emotions are incomparable. You see the emotions of the players, the emotions of our fans. Victory is victory, three points in our tally. We’ve shortened the gap; now it’s two points. But there’s still the second round ahead, a long journey. The guys did well today, played until the end, were winning 2—0, but due to mistakes, conceded two goals. But they scored the winning goal, first the one that wasn’t counted. But they scored another one, which was counted. The wind helped a bit, but this is football, luck favors the stronger.
— Two rounds ago, the gap was eight points. But last season, «Dynamo» also lagged far behind, but caught up in the spring part. Is it normal to overcome such a difference in youth football?
— Of course, it’s a normal situation because players come after the academy and in the first half of the season, they are just adapting, getting used to the requirements we set for them. In the first matches, they didn’t understand everything. But closer to the camps and especially after the camps, the team is already balanced, players understand more about tactics and our requirements. There’s more interaction and team play.
— «Dynamo» again defeated a principal opponent. How much confidence will this victory give the team before the second UEFA Youth League match?
— Of course, the opponent is principal, but today before the match, we told the players that it would be a tough game, there would be provocations. Today again, there were some shouts from the stands. We train our players not to respond to rudeness, provocations. We prove everything with the game and the result on the field, trying to avoid non-football moments that don’t embellish the game.
— Considering how the game unfolded and the disallowed goals, don’t you think the gap should have been larger?
— This is football. One can say we could have scored more. Besides these two goals, the opponents didn’t create more chances. But whoever scores wins. We scored one more goal. We are used to, and «Shakhtar» probably too, slightly better quality fields. The ball was bouncing, not rolling quickly. But we were on equal terms. The guys did well, the game was tough.
Now we are preparing for the UEFA Youth League. On Sunday, we are already heading out. A tough return match awaits us in Sweden. After this victory, with a good mood and enthusiasm, we set off on our journey.
— Before the match, there was an energy circle. After the final whistle, the players also gathered to talk. If it’s not a secret, what words were spoken after the victory? Any congratulations?
— So far, there were no congratulations. You don’t need additional motivation for these matches. You saw the emotions that were surging two days ago when the first team won. And today, when the goal was disallowed, when we were scoring goals, the entire bench was jumping up. These emotions are incomparable.
