Honored coach of Ukraine Myron Markevych shared what he expects from the 3rd round match of the main stage of the Conference League between Kyiv’s 'Dynamo' and Bosnia’s 'Zrinski', which will take place today in Lublin.
— Myron Bohdanovych, in your opinion, will 'Dynamo' manage to defeat 'Zrinski'?
— Clearly, the favorite is 'Dynamo'. I don’t even know who this team 'Zrinski' is... You need to win in such matches and against such opponents. What is there to talk about? If we can’t beat such teams, then I don’t know...
— Will 'Dynamo' be able to recover not only physically but also psychologically after two tough games against 'Shakhtar' (2:1, 1:3)?
— I think they will. I hope so, because we need to earn points [for the UEFA coefficient table], as we are already so low... 'Dynamo' players need to understand that such teams need to be beaten. It’s clear that they shouldn’t underestimate the opponents, but they need to go out and win!
— Do you think Shovkovskyi will again field Yarmolenko as a forward, or is it time to end these experiments with the veteran of the blue and whites?
— You need to put a pure forward, and Yarmolenko can also play in midfield. At the spearhead, it should be a forward — Guerrero, not Blenuce. Eduardo also scored against 'Shakhtar' in a cup match and before that.
— Which central pair of defenders, another problematic area for 'Dynamo', do you like more and seems more reliable? Popov — Tiare, Tiare — Mykhavko, or Mykhavko — Popov?
— Mykhavko has a good first pass and can start attacks, but again, I don’t know what team 'Zrinski' is. If they have tall forwards, then Tiare should play. If the Bosnians don’t have tall forwards, then most likely Mykhavko and Popov will look better in the center of defense.
— Doesn’t it seem to you that Tiare has pushed Mykhavko out of the starting lineup and now Taras is a backup for Aliu?
— There’s a nuance here. You remember that Mykhavko ended the game against 'Crystal Palace' early (0:2) due to an injury. It’s quite possible that’s why Tiare became the main player for a few matches.
In general, Shovkovskyi should know better than us who to release from the start, because he sees all his players not only in matches but also in training. Who is currently in better physical shape, in particular.
— In the center of the field, on the holding position, until recently, Brazhko was practically indispensable, but Mykhailenko is now getting more and more playtime. Who do you think Shovkovskyi will trust in the game against 'Zrinski'?
— I like Brazhko, I have said this many times. He has good attributes for a holding midfielder, but he needs to improve in his ball interception skills. Work on that. If he improves, he will be a very serious player (let’s note that Shovkovskyi announced before the match that Brazhko will not be able to play against 'Zrinski', — ed. note).
— The last question of our conversation. What is your prediction for the match 'Dynamo' — 'Zrinski'? What will be the score of the game in Lublin?
— I think Kyiv will win by a margin of two goals. If they don’t win against 'Zrinski', there will be nothing more to talk about...
Victor Glukhensky