Boyko, Dakhnovsky Kabaev and the entire team of the 15th round of the Premier League

On our website SportArena.com – teams of all rounds of the Ukrainian Premier League 2023/24. Who made it into the top 11 this time and won in individual categories?

Goalkeeper – Denis Boyko (Polesie)

The First League champion achieved an excellent result in the match against the Premier League champion – a 0:0 draw away. Of course, the experienced goalkeeper of Polesie played an important role in this confrontation. A total of five shots were hit on target by Boyko – he parried the shots of Kryskiv, Zubkov, Stepanenko, Neverton and Sudakov from different distances and positions. Several times Denis saved Zhytomyr residents from obvious goals, so he made a significant contribution to the success of Polesie.

EtcFirst defender – Vladimir Adamyuk (SK Dnepr-1)

Experts managed to approve the defense of Chernomorets, but Dnepr-1 managed to find weaknesses in the game of its opponents, who were already predicted to move to the giants. For example, Adamyuk: he took a direct part in the first two effective attacks of the hosts. It was after his throw-out that Filippov gave showtime, opening the scoring on the spot right in front of the goal, and later Vladimir himself, having famously played with Gutsulyak, struck an irresistible blow.

TseCentral defender – Evgeniy Pavlyuk (Vorskla)

The confrontation with LNZ, even a newcomer to the division, did not bode well for the hosts’ defensive line. Having fast and technical flanks, as well as strikers of the level of Khoblenko and Pryadun, the Cherkassy club is able to load the defenders of almost any UPL team with work. It’s good that Pavlyuk, together with Perduta, Krupsky and Kornienko, played selflessly. Evgeniy did a great job in the air, made a lot of tackles and rebounds, and also diffused the situation several times with clearances right in front of the goal.

TseCentral defender – Nazariy Muravsky (LNZ)

The UPL debutant, Cherkassy LNZ, ended a difficult trip to Poltava with an honorable goalless draw. It was possible to contain the restructured attack group of the recent European Cup participant, largely thanks to the coordinated actions of the centerback duo Muravsky – Kovalev, who were constantly helped by the “breakwater” Rybalka, going deeper in work without the ball. Nazariy, as the leader of the line since the first league days, worked hard with the ball (the lowest percentage of losses in passes in recent rounds), made about a dozen tackles and rebounds and clearly worked in moments when the ball was thrown near the goal.

Lefirst defender – Ivan Dibango (Krivbass)

Dibango himself shot at the Minai goal and took part in several sharp attacks, including the decisive goal. Outplaying his opponents along the entire length of his flank, Ivan was brilliant in both defense and attack. He pretty much exhausted his rivals, some of them even had to be replaced. Ivan succeeded in both long passes and short combinations, and he constantly worked on aggravation and became one of the leaders in the number of thrown outs on the tour.

Tsecentral midfielder – Vyacheslav Tankovsky (Polesie)

Tankovsky played a very strong match against his home club. So strong that even the sending off in stoppage time of the second half did not spoil the impression – especially since Vyacheslav did not “bring” danger and did not receive a card out of stupidity, but disrupted a dangerous attack, being the last argument of his team. Tankovsky did a huge amount of work, totaling more than 30 tackles and interceptions. The zero-sum game away from home against the champion was made possible, also thanks to the excellent play of the midfielder.

EtcFirst midfielder – Vitaly Dakhnovsky (Veres)

Dakhnovsky’s return after injury will be remembered by fans for a long time. In a difficult situation, when the guests took the lead, it was Vitaly who earned the removal of the key defender of Metalist 1925 Kurilo. Dakhnovsky himself could have pulled the goal back in the first half, but the goalkeeper stopped his shot. But there Shevchenko played the finishing touch, distinguishing himself by scoring a goal. After the break, Vitaly earned and converted a penalty, again equalizing the score for his team.

Atoffensive midfielder – Alexander Pikhalenok (SK Dnepr-1)

A brilliant match from one of those football players who are already playing class at the UPL level. Pikhalyonok not only performed set pieces and subtle penetrating passes, but also set an example in pressing and team interaction. As an example, the throw-out moment from which Filippov scored – it was not obligatory, but was the result of Alexander’s persistent pressure. Later, Avagimyan, correcting a systemic defense error, was forced to shoot down Pikhalenok and received a red card. Alexander could score himself, and several of his brilliant passes were not used by his teammates. But he took part in the initial stage of the first successful combination.

Lefirst midfielder – Vladislav Kabaev (Dynamo)

And here is Kabaev’s best match for Dynamo. Not only because he opened the scoring after almost a year and a half at the club. From the beginning of the match, Vladislav became the most important participant in all the main events. It was Kabaev and Benito who put pressure on, provoking the young defense and goalkeeper Rukh to make mistakes (as a result, Timchik opened the scoring with a good shot in one of these situations). Vlad could score even earlier, delivering well-aimed, targeted shots. But by the end of the first half, he made the most of the situation, boldly attacking Podgursky in the opposing half and delivering a clear shot.

Onfalling – Andrey Boryachuk (Metalist 1925)

His team lost in a decent fight, and Boryachuk did a lot to ensure that the Kharkov team returned from Rivne with points. In the third minute, Andrei managed to finish off after Rusin’s targeted shot, and after the break, he provided an assist to Rostislav for Veres’ second goal. Probably, under other circumstances, three goals would have been enough for Metalist 1925 to win, but the opponent was too charged for three points.

Onfalling – Alexander Filippov (SK Dnepr-1)

In one half, Filippov did a lot so that Dnepr-1 did not worry about three points in the match with the Odessa team. Already in the debut after Adamyuk’s throw-out, Alexander did a great job right in front of the opponents’ goal, receiving, turning and shooting past Varakuta. Filippov could still score; it seems that he has established good interaction with Pikhalenok, who, after Dovbik, lacked a good pass recipient. Interestingly, Tanchik, who replaced the goalscorer, also played a very strong match.

Shakhtar played a goalless match for the first time since last year’s defeat to Leipzig. They were upset, but we, on the other hand, thought how cool this episode was/photo of FC Shakhtar

It turned out to be a difficult start for the Rivne team under the leadership of the new head coach; Veres is again fighting to maintain a registration in the UPL and has such unexpected competitors as Zorya this season. The match against Metalist 1925 was of great strategic importance both for the Rivne players themselves and for the entire lower half of the table. The guests took the lead twice, although they played in the minority from the 9th minute. Successful substitutions from Lavrinenko and fairly bright football from the Veres leaders helped turn the tide of the match and win 4:3. This is one of the most entertaining matches of the season so far.

• Analysis from the All-Ukrainian Association of Football Coaches – Here.

Several players came into the game especially brightly from the bench. Tanchik helped Dnepr-1 turn the victory over the Odessa team into a crushing one, and Shastal even gave Polesie hope for victory by defeating the miners’ defense. But we have two laureates – and their achievements are brilliant. Bliznichenko brought victory to Krivbass in Transcarpathia with the only goal in the match, and Gaiduchik in the 90th minute with the score 3:3 scored the winning goal against Metalist 1925. If you need a standard for the performance of a “joker”, then here it is: appearing on the field on the 86th minute, Nikolai decided the fate of the fight within four minutes!

• Sport Arena statistics: 13 league matches, 1 goal, 1 assist.

The 21-year-old midfielder had previously appeared as a substitute six times, but there was no breakthrough. The head coach’s fellow countryman, a midfielder with a good school and high-speed dribbling, was for a long time in the shadow of Zaderaki, Kozhushko and Kuzik, who were rapidly progressing in Krivbass. But in the match against FC Minai, it was Bliznichenko who played a decisive role. Just four minutes after coming on as a substitute, Victor took advantage of Kozhushko’s discount and scored the only winning goal in the match.

• Sport Arena statistics: 7 matches in the championship, 1 goal.

The young Cameroonian is rapidly progressing in the Krivoy Rog club. A stable first-team player, a progressive young footballer, a candidate for his country’s national team. The most important question now is which resources have accurate information: those reporting that Dibango belongs to the Estonian Levadia, an intermediary in the transition from a sanctioned neighboring state, or those that claim that the very next day he stopped being leased and moved to Krivbass on a free basis agent. An important question that probably already interests sports directors of many clubs.

• Sport Arena statistics: 15 league matches, 1 goal, 3 assists.

A free kick from Odessa’s Avagimyan, a beautiful long-range strike from Dynamo’s Timchik, a courageous goal from Dnieper’s Filippov – there was something to see in the reporting round. However, in our opinion, Rivne resident Vlad Sharai gave a super performance. His goal with his left foot from the right flank was made as if from the notes of Andrei Bliznichenko or remote video lessons from the same Marlos or Yarmolenko. Well done!

The best player of this round was the player who kept a clean sheet against Shakhtar.

• Sport Arena statistics: 14 matches in the championship, 8 goals conceded, 7 clean sheets.