Pikhalenok, Kvasnitsa, Krasnopir, Nagnoyny and the hero of the Classic: the entire team of the 13th round of the Premier League

On the 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 – Kirill Fesyun (Kolos)

The weakness of the UPL is expressed, among other things, in the low number of shots on target. This is a sign of poor performance football. Therefore, goalkeepers have to be assessed on a residual basis, realizing that they also have little room for heroism. So LNZ made only three shots on target at Kolos on their own field – and this is not the worst indicator of the tour. If at the moment with the goal from Cherkasy Shestakov Fesyun did not play on the way out (there was logic in this – there were his own defenders next to the opponent), then later he parried a wonderful shot from defender Stasiuk and reacted to a less dangerous shot on target from attacker Khoblenko. In principle, LNZ has a good attack group. If Fesyun had let up, we could have forgotten about the strong-willed draw on the road.

EtcFirst defender – Efim Konoplya (Shakhtar)

Even despite the latest losses, Dynamo’s left flank with Dubinchak and Voloshin, as well as Shepelev, ready to move to the edge and serve with his right from there, posed a certain threat to the Miners. All the more vivid are the impressions of the game of Konoplya, who did not let his opponents play out and excluded most of the sharpness from his zone. With the exception of the moment when Shepelev crossed Benito for a shot, there was no direct sharpness from this edge. Efim stopped Voloshin and Benito several times, and also managed to defuse the situation at the goal. Separately, it should be noted that Zubkov could play without worrying about the rear.

Tsecentral defender – Valeriy Bondar (Shakhtar)

Shakhtar’s defense experienced several unpleasant moments at the start; due to Azarov’s injury, Matvienko was forced to move to the left flank, and Rakitsky was called into the center of defense from the bench. However, Bondar found a common language with him and, on the whole, played reliably against the Kiev team. He acted accurately in interceptions and tackles, read the game well, and got to the ball before his opponents. I made a serious mistake only once when I kicked the ball outside the penalty area right at Shaparenko (he shot unsuccessfully), and he also received an optional yellow card against Voloshin.

TseCentral defender – Timur Stetskov (Krivbass)

The leader defended a strategically important draw in Zhitomir, although at times Polesie created serious problems for the guests, Klishchuk came to the rescue twice, and the stand protected him. Stetskov, in general, managed to work on defense, and also gave a subtle assist to Kuzyk. One can blame Timur in relation to Kozak’s goal – however, it would also be fair to note that Dibango did not have time to return and after Makuan’s pass, the opponent had time and space to handle the ball and shoot for execution. Stetskov could only act harshly, which also had its consequences.

Lefirst defender – Semyon Vovchenko (Veres)

In search of stabilization of the game, the Rivne team changed several strategically important positions, in particular, Vovchenko, who often plays in the center of defense, was transferred to the left flank. In the match against Zarya, her former backup worked a lot in defense, but it turned out that Veres was useful in attack. It was Semyon who equalized the score for the first time in the match for the Rivne team, finishing off a corner kick from S. Sharaya.

Tsecentral midfielder – Alexander Pikhalenok (SK Dnepr-1)

The cybernetic center of the Dnieper team itself aimed at the gates of FC Alexandria, but most traditionally worked in organizing the game and playing along. It was Pikhalyonok who executed a magnificent sliced ​​pass to the far post, from where Adamyuk threw Filippova under attack (this was the so-called “pre-assist” for the winning goal), and also made several more excellent passes. In particular, with Alexander they played out the attack that Gutsulyak completed so beautifully (the goal was not counted due to offside). Another wonderful pass from Pikhalenka was not used by Lednev.

EtcFirst midfielder – Oleksandr Zubkov (Shakhtar)

Zubkov was one of Shakhtar’s expected trump cards in the Classic, and he played his role. Alexander was active throughout the match – it was he who, in the end, struck the first shot on target in the match. Moreover, he was not limited to his position along the corridor, but constantly improvised, shifted, and exchanged with the zones. In the episode with the decisive goal, Zubkov boldly went to the center, started on Neverton’s through pass and shot at the goalkeeper. The winning goal was complemented by good work on the flank, where he and Konoplya beat dangerous opponents.

Atoffensive midfielder – Denis Nagnoyny (Zarya)

Under previous coaches, Nagnoyny periodically reminded himself of himself – and could even play a pure striker, a kind of ersatz forward. In Rivne, Denis played a major role for his team. First, he opened the scoring by closing in a high-quality flank pass from Danchenko, and in the second half, after a corner, he successfully played along with Yatsik, who again brought the Luhansk team ahead. Kriventsov’s team did not retain the victory, but Nagnoyny played his best match of the season.

Lefirst midfielder – Ilya Kvasnitsa (Rukh)

The Rukhov team’s winger played a crazy match. Obolon could not keep up with his movements, because the fast-moving football player seemed to have time everywhere and willingly stretched the redoubts of the Kiev residents with his non-trivial raids. Already in the third minute, Ilya blocked Roman’s cross at the far post, and at the end of the match, when the hosts were forced to win back, he timely passed the ball to Karabin. Playing nominally on the right side, Kwasnica has the potential to operate across the entire attacking width. His progress shows that Ilya can develop into an international player.

Onfalling – Igor Krasnopir (Obolon)

He could have equalized the score in the first half, almost getting the ball, he worked as a play-by-player – he passed the pre-goal pass to Slobodyan, who connected Sukhanov (Sergei’s long-range shot was not seen by the goalkeeper). Immediately after the break, Igor made a great start to Dubko’s pass and brought Obolon ahead at the Lviv Arena. He also took part in the moment that ended with a goal not scored.

Onfalling – Alexander Filippov (SK Dnepr-1)

A tough match with the Alexandrians forced the hosts to appreciate the chances they created. So Filippov intuitively felt the goal, reacting to a discount from Adamyuk and scoring almost a step away from the goal line. Alexander could also score, having put the ball under himself in his signature manner – he sent it from a not very convenient position past the goal. Filippov also demonstrated excellent understanding with his new teammates – first of all, Pikhalenko. Together they organized a goal for Gutsulyak, although it was not counted due to offside.

Before the Dynamo – Shakhtar match, team captains Vladimir Brazhko and Taras Stepanenko honored the legendary football journalist Artem Frankov at the opening ceremony of the match along with his family.

The start in Shakhtar for the new head coach turned out to be like a cold shower – first Barcelona, ​​then the match for reaching the semi-finals of the Ukrainian Cup, followed by Klasichne in the match with Dynamo, eager for victory over the most important rival. Pusic managed to somehow distribute his forces and find the optimal approach to rotation. He made not the most obvious decisions in the center of defense, and also reacted properly to Azarov’s injury (moreover, with the release of Rakitsky, the line played more reliably). Without Bondarenko, of course, the midfield did not have the expected harmony and productivity, but this was compensated by high-quality flanks, work without the ball and a quick transition from defense to attack. This victory is a significant step for Marino to gain authority in a new place.

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

Top substitutions in this round, eyes wide open. Karabine saved Rukh from defeat with Obolon, Bliznichenko, with a pass from another player from the bench – Kovalyuk – scored Veres’s draw goal for Zarya, Kozak from Polesie canceled out his team’s defeat from Krivbass. Even the veteran Milko, after 10 minutes on the field, managed to equalize the score in the match between his Kolos and LNZ. However, the most striking substitutions came from Metalist 1925. Boryachuk equalized the score in the match with Chernomorets, and Moura scored the winning goal against the Odessa team, who, even in the minority, held out for a long time against the Kharkov team. But we don’t know who to praise: Metalist 1925 confirmed the resignation of Edmar, who was absent at the match, so it was his assistant Golodyuk who was in charge of the game.

• Sport Arena statistics: 8 league matches, 1 goal.

He opened the scoring in the third minute after Roman’s cool work on the flank, and in the end he assisted Karabin, who equalized the score in a dramatic match with Obolon (2:2). Kvasnitsa is a winger of the Ukrainian youth team, relatively new to adult football. However, as we see, this is a player who, at 20 years old, is able to take responsibility for the result in a difficult situation.

• Sport Arena statistics: 13 league matches, 5 goals, 3 assists.

Any positive performance by Neverton in the Classic would be a surprise – while we saw his speed and technique, these are the makings. There was a lack of effective action, and this is exactly what you expect from a newcomer for 3.6 million euros in the current Premier League – specifics. With Dynamo, the best showcase that is only possible in modern domestic football, Neverton boldly went ahead, diligently looked for itself in Shakhtar’s combination play and ultimately sparkled with its game thinking, giving an excellent assist to Zubkov.

• Sport Arena statistics: 6 matches in the championship, 1 amsist.

In fact, the best goal of the tour was stolen from us by the video review of the judges – we are, of course, talking about Gutsulyak’s masterpiece. Choosing from others, we note the Zhytomyr resident Kozak, who very stylishly used a fast attack with a shift and a well-calibrated long-range strike.

The best player of this round was the footballer who decided the fate of Klasichny with his goal.

• Sport Arena statistics: 11 league matches, 2 goals, 3 assists.