Matviy Ponomarenko, the scorer of the winning goal in the Round 8 Ukrainian Premier League match against Karpaty (1:0) shared his thoughts on the game.
– You have returned to the team after being with the Ukraine national team. Have you missed club football?
– Of course, I missed my team. This was the first time we had such a long international break, with the national team playing four matches during the international window. I think both the fans and the players missed club football. Today, we returned with a victory. It’s good that we earned three points.
– There was a warm atmosphere after the match, with the team going over to the fans. Could you feel how much the supporters inspired the team to push forward today?
– The fans really missed football. I’m grateful to them for coming, supporting us and urging us forward. We achieved our goal and earned three points at home. A big thank you to the fans for their support.
– Last season’s match against Karpaty unfolded in a similar way, but your goal was disallowed. Today, you finally found the net. Was it symbolic and fair that you were the one to score the winning goal?
– You could say it was revenge. I believe that my goal last time should have stood because I scored it within the rules, and my scoring streak was interrupted. That’s why I went into this match with double motivation. I wanted to score and show that the previous goal had not been a fluke.
– Was Rusyn’s sending-off the key moment of the game, or was the match decided by another incident?
– Probably the sending-off after all. Our opponents were reduced to ten men, more space opened up, and we managed to break them down. I believe we could have won with both teams at full strength, but the referee decided that an opponent had to be sent off. It’s good that we won.
– How would you assess the intensity of the battle on the pitch?
– To be honest, it was a difficult game. Karpaty are a good team. You saw how they started the season; before this match, they were ahead of us in the standings. They had plenty of good chances. I believe Georgiy Bushchan was the hero of the match – he saved everything he possibly could today.
– Nazar Voloshyn could have doubled the lead with a shot from almost the halfway line. What went through your mind at that moment?
– I had already started running to celebrate because I thought the ball would go into the net. Unfortunately, it didn’t happen. But that’s nothing to worry about. He did well, made a positive impact after coming on, strengthened our play and provided an assist.
