Dynamo head coach Ihor Kostiuk commented on his team’s winning Ukrainian Premier League match against Karpaty (1:0) in an interview with Football Hub.
– Today Dynamo kept another clean sheet, their fourth in a row. Georgiy Bushchan also made more saves today than in any of those previous three matches. You probably analysed the opponents and knew that Karpaty are very dangerous from set pieces. In the first half, they created two chances from corners alone. Did you make any adjustments to your set-piece defending at half-time?
– Of course, we studied this team and knew how they would play. Set pieces are a real weapon that they use. They have scored five goals from corners, so we analysed that aspect thoroughly. But a win is a win. We made a few adjustments at half-time. You saw that the pattern of play changed after the break – we started using the flanks a little more actively and scored our goal.
After that, the game became rather nervous, with long balls forward and second balls. After the international players returned, the team was a little unbalanced. But the most important thing is that we won today, and we will move forward.
– It was noticeable that Ponomarenko was marking Babohlo man-to-man during corners. Was it your specific instruction to have him mark the opponents’ best player at set pieces?
– Did Babohlo get any shots on goal today? No? Then the question is closed. Matviy did his job.
– And please comment on Matviy’s goal as well. It was clear that he had returned from the national team, where he had not managed to score, and was very eager to find the net.
– These are the kinds of goals he scores. He scores them thanks to his skill and the way he uses his body to shield the ball before unexpectedly shooting from underneath a defender’s leg. He scored another one like that today, and it helped us win.
– Today’s match followed a similar script to the previous meeting between these teams at Valeriy Lobanovskyi Stadium: another narrow scoreline, another red card, and plenty of disputes on the pitch. I saw you protesting in the technical area, although one of the visiting coach’s assistants was sent off...
– Well, of course, because there was a clear foul on Pikhalonok – he was pulled by the arm and turned around. But the referee did not call the foul. Then, in another incident, he awarded a free kick. These situations need to be reviewed and analysed. In the previous match, we scored a perfectly valid goal, and the experts subsequently confirmed that as well.
Of course, the red card helped us today, but despite that, we looked more convincing in the second half. Overall, we deserved to win on the strength of our performance after the break.
