On Friday, November 21st, Kyiv’s «Dynamo» played the 13th round of the Ukrainian Championship (U-19) — away, Igor Kostyuk’s team played against Kovalevsky’s «Kolos».
National League U-19, 13th round
«Kolos U-19» — «Dynamo» U-19 − 0:1(0:1)
Goal: Ponomarenko (42).
Warnings: Bezruchuk (36) — Korobov (60), Zakharchenko (90+1).
Sent off: Zakharchenko (90+5, second warning).
«Kolos»: 72. Tkachuk — 16. Kudelya, 4. Shershen (c), 5. Danyliuk, 48. I. Kokora — 6. Sukhnos, 88. Bezruchuk (19. Potiyenko, 79), 47. Denysenko, 10. Chernenko (11. Shcherbak, 79), 15. Merva — 7. Zakharkiv.
«Dynamo»: 71. Surkis (c) — 13. Korobov, 34. Zakharchenko, 6. Ivaskiv (4. Ohorodnik, 11), 11. Hubenko — 18. Ozymay, 8. Lyusin, 22. Osypenko (14. Ishchenko, 71), 10. Redushko (19. Zadorozhny, 81), 7. Andreiko — 99. Ponomarenko (17. Hrodzinskyi, 71).
In recent seasons, the Kovalevskys have established themselves as a very inconvenient opponent for the «White-Blues». Of the last five matches the teams played against each other, the Dynamo team won only one and lost three. This match was not expected to be easy.
From the first minutes, the Dynamo team took possession of the ball, while the opponent focused on counterattacks. In the opening of the match, Zakharchenko joined the attack but shot directly into the goalkeeper’s hands from afar. Overall, the hosts were quite reliable in defending their possessions and did not allow the «White-Blues» much room.
In such situations, when the opponent skillfully closes zones, individual qualities come to the fore. In particular, Osypenko carried the ball through the central zone and shot from afar, but the goalkeeper was on point, and shortly after, Lyusin moved from the flank to the center, but his shot lacked accuracy.
The Dynamo players also tried to make the most of set pieces. In one episode, after a corner kick, Lyusin adapted and headed the ball, and a few minutes later, Ozymay tried a one-touch finish from a cross, but in both cases, our boys lacked precision.
In the last minutes of the first half, Igor Kostyuk’s team increased their activity. While Redushko, set up by Osypenko for a shot, lacked accuracy, Ponomarenko materialized the guests' playing advantage into a scoring goal. In the 42nd minute, the hosts lost the ball in the midfield, the Dynamo players intercepted and brought the forward to the goal. Matviy avoided marking with a few touches and shot precisely into the corner from under a defender — 0:1.
With the resumption of play after the break, the guests did not retreat back in hopes of holding onto their narrow lead, but continued to press the opponent’s goal. However, they struggled to create moments — perhaps due to challenging weather conditions, as Kyiv and its surroundings were engulfed in dense fog today.
But the guests still had opportunities to increase their lead. In particular, in the 69th minute, Ponomarenko narrowly missed the top corner after a solo run, and after a powerful shot by Lyusin in the 82nd minute, the hosts were saved by the crossbar. Also, in the 85th minute, Surkis had to step in — our goalkeeper managed to react to a long-range shot and a deflection from one of his partners.
Ultimately, the Dynamo team managed to maintain their winning score, but not without some troubles. In stoppage time, in two separate episodes, Zakharchenko received a warning and was subsequently sent off, which means he will not be able to help his team in the next championship match due to suspension.
It is noted that Dynamo’s next match will be on Wednesday, November 26th, within the framework of the UEFA Youth League against the Scottish «Hibernian», and in the domestic arena on November 30th, they will meet with the youth of «Poltava».