Sport Arena names the symbolic team of the next UPL round of the 2023/24 season, as well as the best in individual nominations, which are determined by our website for each round
On the website SportArena.com – teams of all rounds of the Ukrainian Premier League 2023/24. Who this time got into the top 11 and became the winner in individual categories?
Goalkeeper – Dmitry Riznyk (Shakhtar)
The match in Kovalevka was not as easy for the champion as it might seem. Kolos, led by Vishniak, mastered the new tactical scheme with three center-backs and successfully started the new season. The Pitmen’s goalkeeper Riznyk faced serious challenges in his possessions. In total, the hosts struck five shots on target at Shakhtar, and Dmitry reacted to quite dangerous shots from Tsurikov, Veletnya and Salabay from outside the penalty area and worked during numerous innings and crosses. Symbolically, the match ended when Riznyk covered Orikhovsky’s long-range shot. This is the first “dry” match between the heir to Pyatov and Trubin.
Right back – Nikita Kravchenko (Polesie)
The trip to Alexandria was expected to be a difficult test for the Polesie full-backs – because Rotan has a selection of bright, fast attacking players. The confrontation with the same Shulyansky did not bode well for his longtime teammate in the youth teams of Dynamo. Everything that was before the first goal, the coaching staff will take apart and distribute at its true worth. However, withstanding the serious pressure of the hosts, Nikita performed a significant amount of work, it was difficult for his opponents to stop him – and often with a foul, and it was also Kravchenko who gave an assist to Makuana – in the second goal in the match
Central defender – Igor Soldat (FC Minay)
The only right-footed center back in the Transcarpathian defense trio had a lot of work. The soldier successfully worked in space, read the game – thanks to this, he intercepted a number of sharp passes from Zorya into the final third of the field, and Igor also managed to block potentially quite dangerous shots three times. Although FC Minai acted quite spectacularly in the construction of attacks and at times even significantly outperformed the Luhansk team, with the slightest weakness of the defense, this work would have been devoid of content. Considering the loss of several players due to the virus, Sharan’s men were able to mobilize and group and stop the opponent, who has a bright attacking potential.
Central defender – Nikita Bezugly (Metalist 1925)
Metallist 1925 wins the second match in a row, and without conceded goals. In Cherkassy, local footballers, cheered up by the change of head coach, acted quite actively, and the Kharkiv defenders acted with great dedication and mutual insurance. We note Bezugly, who often imposed a fight on his opponents (there was no best on the tour in terms of the number of tackles and rebounds), and who did not allow the same Spinner to accelerate, and also effectively connected to the standards. Nikita could score with his head, and after his gorgeous long-range shot, the hosts’ goalkeeper gave the best save of the tour.
Left back – Ivan Dibango (Kryvbas)
The Cameroonian continues to progress in the Premier League. In the match with Obolon, he played in the class with a margin. He outplayed opponents one-on-one, but at the same time he did not leave even the rough work (quite convincing numbers in tackles, rebounds, interceptions). Dibango in Kyiv at the Obolon-Arena connected to the attacks, aggravated and one day he could score himself.
Central midfielder – Taras Moroz (Obolon)
The third game in eight days, with the logistics of European competitions (moving 2,500 km across Ukraine), did not unsettle Moroz. Opornik Obolontsy performed a large amount of work, successfully resisted quite high-class legionnaires from Kryvbas in the center of the field. Taras did not avoid a tough fight, did not remove his legs, and also tied up his opponents, preventing them from passing through the central bridgehead and breaking out into the operational space. For this match – a very important, responsible job.
Right midfielder – Oleksandr Nazarenko (Polesye)
The player who changed everything. At the 59th minute, Nazarenko replaced Kozak, and it was he who was destined to become the hero of the match in Alexandria. After a pass from another joker from Zhytomyr – Kushnirenko – Oleksandr struck from afar and opened the scoring. Then he fought at the corner flag, after which Kravchenko assisted Makuana. And at the end, another hero of the match – Budkovsky – closed the serve of Nazarenko from a free kick.
Attacking midfielder – Dmitry Kryskiv (Shakhtar)
Another amazing match by Kryskiv. Both goals at the Kolos-Arena took place with the direct participation of this midfielder. At the 25th minute, even with the equality of the line-ups, the score was opened in the three-mover Zubkov-Kryskiv-Nazarina. Later, Zubkov and Kryskiv did the preparatory work for Kashchuk’s goal (the Pitmen had already played in the minority). Dmitry played a strong match, often putting opponents in a position where they were forced to make mistakes or foul.
Left midfielder – Beni Makuana (Polesie)
The call to the Congolese national team is no accident. Macuana had a splendid start in the Premier League of Ukraine, so even against a fairly strong opponent, which is FC Oleksandriya, he played at the highest level. Even in the first half, when it was hard for the Zhytomyr team, Beni combined great with Budkovsky and Arielson, who did not reward his work with accurate shots). On the other hand, when Kravchenko transferred the ball to Makuana from the right flank, he elegantly received it and kicked it into the far corner with his right foot. It was Polesie’s second goal.
Forward – Ruslan Stepanyuk (Vorskla)
Vorsklyane played against Odessa pragmatically, and it paid off. Although Chernomorets tried to create chances, the hosts scored. Already in the debut of the match, Stepaniuk closed the pass to Kane, giving the Poltava team an advantage already in the 4th minute. And later he could score more and supported the attacks great. It was his weak pass to Yurchenko’s move that allowed Vladlen to run into the goalkeeper and actually score the winning goal.
Forward – Dmitry Yusov (Metalist 1925)
The renaissance of the Kharkiv team is directly related to the debugging of the game in attack, where an experienced newcomer Yusov played a significant role. Playing to the left of the young Sidorov, he makes full use of the space that arises in the redoubts of his opponents. In Cherkassy, Dmitry opened the scoring, successfully breaking through to the shock position after Sidorov’s discount, and later he could score again from a similar game situation.
Despite a fairly strong opponent, Kalitvintsev made rather bold substitutions on his field, significantly increased the attacking potential of his team and achieved a crushing victory in Alexandria. Bright flanks, a good punching fist led by Budkovsky and good set pieces are the components of Zhitomir’s success on this outing. Moreover, a number of Polesye players are clearly progressing at a new level for the club.
- Analysis from the All-Ukrainian Association of Football Coaches – here.
He played his (so far) best match for the new team – in 30+ minutes he managed to turn the game around and be involved in all three heads of Zhytomyr in Alexandria.
- Sport Arena stats: 3 league matches, 1 goal, 1 assist.
Last season, Saputin brightly declared himself, and now the 21-year-old Turbaevsky defends the gates of the Luhansk team with courage and talent. In Transcarpathia, Minai created a number of dangerous moments at the gates of Zarya, inflicting six shots on target at Turbaevsky’s goal. He missed only once – from the penalty spot, in other moments he averted the threat and helped his team, at least not to lose away from a difficult opponent.
- Sport Arena stats: 3 league games, 2 goals conceded, 1 shutout.
He scored an important second goal in the match, outplayed his counterparts from FC Oleksandriya, and most importantly, he set a new standard for playing a flank midfielder, combining speed, technique and plasticity.
- Sport Arena stats: 5 league matches, 2 goals.
The best player of this tour was the player who scored himself and assisted Yurchenko in the victory match against Chernomorets.
- Sport Arena stats: 4 league matches, 1 goal, 1 assist.
Source: Sportarena
I’m Todderic Kirkman, a journalist and author for athletistic. I specialize in covering all news related to sports, ranging from basketball to football and everything in between. With over 10 years of experience in the industry, I have become an invaluable asset to my team. My ambition is to bring the most up-to-date information on sports topics around the world.
