In the 12th round of the Ukrainian Premier League, Dynamo travelled to Lviv, where they faced their fierce rivals, Shakhtar Donetsk.
The teams had met at the same venue the previous week in the Round of 16 of the Ukrainian Cup. On that occasion, Dynamo, who had been playing with ten men since the 30th minute, suffered a defeat to the Miners. Therefore, this match had additional significance for the White-Blues.
Macej Kędziorek’s men started the game actively. Shakhtar enjoyed more possession, but Dynamo players threw themselves into tackles and pressed their opponents high up the pitch. There were also several unpleasant incidents. Ogundana, in particular, took a painful blow to the head from the ball and was briefly knocked down. Tymchyk also sustained an injury and was replaced by Sych as early as the 16th minute.
However, the teams did not create many dangerous chances for the spectators. During the first 20 minutes, the only notable opportunity for the Miners was Mendoza's inaccurate shot following a corner, while Voloshyn registered an effort that went wide for the Kyiv side. In the 24th minute, following a corner kick, Thiare attempted a header, but the ball did not reach the goal, hitting Marlon Gomes instead. A few minutes later, Sych joined the attack, collected a rebound and fired from 27 metres, but the ball went straight into Riznyk's hands. In the 29th minute, danger arose near Dynamo's goal. Nazaryna delivered a free kick from the left flank, and Sych, positioned in the six-yard box, stopped the ball but pulled his hand away at the last moment to avoid handling it. Bushchan eventually gathered the ball.
A little later, the teams exchanged excellent scoring opportunities. In the 37th minute, the White-Blues intercepted the ball in midfield, and Ponomarenko played a superb pass to send Voloshyn through on goal, practically one-on-one with Riznyk. However, the Dynamo winger failed to beat the goalkeeper, who turned his shot behind for a corner. A few minutes later, his teammates sent a long ball forward to Alisson, who entered the penalty area and fired at goal, but Bushchan produced an outstanding save to parry the ball away.
In stoppage time at the end of the first half, Shakhtar created another good opportunity when Alisson attempted a long-range shot, but on this occasion the post came to Dynamo's rescue. The teams therefore went into the break with the score still goalless.
The pattern of the game did not change after the restart. However, what did change in the 53rd minute was the number of players on the pitch. During a corner kick, Dubinchak pulled Pedro Henrique's shirt, and the Brazilian openly struck Vladyslav on the head. A confrontation broke out, resulting in yellow cards for Dubinchak and Sych, who had stepped in to defend his teammate, while the Shakhtar defender was sent off.
Emotions continued to run high on the pitch, with numerous pushes, provocations and clashes during challenges. As for scoring opportunities, one could mention Ocheretko's powerful shot from outside the penalty area in the 61st minute, which Brazhko blocked. With a numerical advantage, Dynamo mainly relied on positional play, circulating the ball for extended periods, but unfortunately without creating any significant danger in Shakhtar's half. In the 69th minute, Brazhko reminded everyone of his shooting ability with a long-range effort, but the ball went straight into Riznyk's hands.
As time went on, the White-Blues pushed forward more actively. In the 75th minute, Shaparenko unleashed a powerful shot from the edge of the penalty arc, but Bondar blocked it. During the continuation of the attack, Dubinchak fired a powerful long-range effort, but after a slight deflection, the ball ended up in Riznyk's hands. Bah then tried his luck from the right corner of the penalty area, but his shot whistled just wide of the post.
Macej Kędziorek's men spent the closing minutes on the attack. Bah had a good opportunity when he attempted a turning shot from the edge of the penalty area, but the ball flew over the crossbar. Thiare met a corner delivery, getting ahead of Riznyk, but unfortunately sent his header over the bar. Shakhtar also had a chance when Neverton broke through on the left side of the attack and found himself practically one-on-one with Bushchan, but he failed to beat our goalkeeper with a shot from a tight angle.
In the end, the match in Lviv finished in a goalless but fiercely contested draw. An international break now lies ahead, after which Dynamo will return to UPL action on November 22 with a home match against Obolon.
UPL, Matchday 12
Shakhtar – Dynamo – 0:0 (0:0)
Shakhtar: 31. Riznyk – 17. Tobias, 5. Bondar, 22. Matviienko (c), 13. Pedro Henrique – 29. Nazaryna, 27. Ocheretko, 6. Marlon (11. Nevertton, 73), 30. Alisson (37. Lucas, 84), 77. Mendoza (18. Gram, 54) – 2. Traoré (49. Meirelles, 73).
Dynamo: 1. Bushchan – 18. Tymchyk (5. Sych, 16), 94. Kędziora, 66. Thiare, 44. Dubinchak – 6. Brazhko, 8. Pikhalonok (c, 15. Rubchynskyi, 88), 10. Shaparenko, 16. Ogundana (47. Prado, 88), 9. Voloshyn (42. Bah, 71) – 11. Ponomarenko (99. Mounguengue, 71).
Yellow cards: Marlon (69), Meirelles (85) – Kędziora (28), Sych (51), Dubinchak (53), Shaparenko (89).
Sent off: Tobias (53).
