Dynamo Kyiv U19 head coach commented on his team’s victory over Swedish side Brommapojkarna.
– We prepared for this match already knowing how the Swedes would play. With all due respect to the opponent we should have won by a larger margin.
– When the opponent scored at the end was there any chance they could have changed the game or did you keep everything under control?
– Of course such moments can happen but we controlled the game. As you saw, apart from some crosses and chaos in our penalty area, they didn’t really create any clear chances. Their only goal came from a long ball behind the defense – they brought on a tall striker for that zone and our defenders slightly “fell asleep.”
Our game plan – to defend in a mid-block and break quickly in counterattacks – worked. We could have finished the game off in the first half and we created many more chances in the second half but didn’t make use of them. Toward the end the opponents pushed forward which made things a bit nervous.
– From the first minutes Dynamo went all-out in attack but after the first goal the opponent seemed to control possession more. Was that part of your plan?
– As I said we planned to meet them in a mid-block and be aggressive in midfield. They had some chances in Poland when we played our home leg and they promised to make things difficult for us on artificial turf. That’s why we raised our defensive line slightly knowing that long balls behind our defense wouldn’t be as effective on a fast surface. Our plan worked – we adjusted well to those passes and they rarely reached their targets.
– It seemed that your central defenders, Vladyslav Zakharchenko and Danylo Ohorodnik, were the most valuable players. Would you agree?
– Of course, when the ball moves quickly from flank to flank, central defenders have to close the spaces. Our guys already have an almost instinctive understanding of how to shift and cover zones. Still both Zakharchenko and Ohorodnik had a few small ball losses that led to counterattacks. If we remove those mistakes the whole defensive line – and the team overall – played at a very good level.
– When Dynamo made its first substitution, Ivaskiv came on, while the opponent had already made five. And Ivaskiv scored. Did you “guess right” with the substitution?
– That was no coincidence. We always say that any player who comes on can score. Ivaskiv was in the right place at the right time, struck the ball well and scored. But what’s most important is that all the players followed our tactical plan exactly. We didn’t make substitutions just for the sake of it – only when someone was clearly tired. Everyone played with high energy and great discipline today.
Osypenko, for example, wanted to stay on but we saw he was no longer reaching the ball so we replaced him. I want to thank the players for trusting the coach and fulfilling the tasks we set for them. That brings results – and they understand that. After such matches, when they see that the coach’s plan works, they seem to “grow wings” and become even more motivated.
– Were you surprised by the crowd’s support during the match?
– Today there were many Ukrainians supporting us. Some Ukrainian girls who work at our hotel told us that a lot of members of the Ukrainian diaspora would come to the game so we were ready for that. But when the crowd started chanting “Dynamo!” even the Swedish team was surprised. I want to thank the Swedish side for organizing this and our fans for coming to the stadium. We repaid them with a good performance and a victory.
