Dynamo head coach Ihor Kostiuk spoke to the media after the second leg of the Europa League first qualifying round against Romania's Universitatea (0:0), in which the White-Blues defeated their opponents in the penalty shootout.
– Congratulations on the victory. In your opinion, what prevented your team from scoring in the first half? You created so many chances and could have put the tie to bed...
– Of course, you're right – we could have finished the tie in the first half. We scored two goals, and we had many more opportunities. But that's football. We have to give credit to the opponents – they're a very well-balanced team. We started strongly and controlled the first half. Today, the unity of the players helped us achieve a positive result. As I said before, it was the spirit that was present in the dressing room, before the game, and on the pitch. I believe that over the two matches we were the stronger side and deserved to go through.
– Did anything about Universitatea's performance surprise you today?
– Nothing surprised me. I've already said that they're a very well-organized team, and credit must go to their coach for building a solid defense. Even so, we created enough chances, especially in the first half. We can see the number of foreign players in Universitatea's squad and their quality. As for us, most of our team are academy graduates – both those who started and those who came off the bench. Given everything that's happening in our country today, we rely more on our own academy players. They're improving, and I believe the experience they gained today, along with the pressure and emotions they went through, will help them continue to develop and become top players in the future. We'll improve from match to match and analyze our performances because this is only the beginning of the season.
– Is your goal to reach the Europa League league phase, or would you be satisfied with a place in the Conference League league phase?
– Of course, we're playing in the Europa League now, and we want to continue our journey in this competition. We have that opportunity, and we'll do everything we can to take it.
– There was tremendous pressure from the crowd during the penalty shootout, but your players handled the situation responsibly and converted their penalties excellently. What was the key factor in the shootout?
– We prepared for the possibility of a penalty shootout. We analyzed how their goalkeeper plays and how their players take penalties. Right before the shootout, we reminded our players of what we had studied and once again showed them how the goalkeeper behaves. Our goalkeeper was also well prepared – we knew how their players usually take penalties. I told my players that when a team is fully focused and has a winning mentality, you can't say the shootout or our victory was just a matter of luck. Everything was organized and carefully planned.
– Dynamo's next match will be in a week's time in Lublin against PAOK. Do you plan to return to Kyiv before then?
– No, we'll stay in Lublin and prepare for that match there.
Finally, I'd like to share some wonderful news. During today's match, our player Oleksandr Tymchyk became the father of a baby daughter. We'd like to congratulate him. It's a special moment for our team as well!
