Shovkovsky: We were preparing for a difficult game, where gaming discipline came to the fore

Head coach Dynamo Alexander Shovkovsky commented on the victory in the match with Polesie (2:1) in the 13th round Ukrainian Premier League.

“I congratulate our fans on a very important victory. We understood perfectly well that our opponent had been preparing for the match for a week, and we were playing two days later on the third. We played a difficult match on Thursday, playing almost 75 minutes in the minority, we spent a lot of energy, and we didn’t have full time to recover, because we only returned to Kyiv yesterday.”

“Therefore, we assumed such a course of events and prepared the team for a very difficult game. We understood that it would not be easy, so game discipline and game organization came to the fore. At the end of the game, we ourselves felt and saw that our strength was not enough.”

“Football is a contact game. Defenders must act in a certain way, but also be careful. Apparently, it was due to the fact that Popov missed a lot due to injuries, just like Yarmolenko. He always says “everything is fine”, but I noticed that he was already tired. Therefore, we had to adapt to playing with three defenders, raise Dubinchak higher, Karavaev had to act on the right together with Voloshin. This was already at the end of the game, although we should have been doing this from the beginning of the second half.”

“Of course, when there is fatigue and stress, we will never rise to the level of our expectations. We will fall before the team is ready, the way they decide, under load, under adrenaline, under pressure, they will do what they always do. When training, I always emphasize good decision making. But for this you need to be fresh and have good physical condition.”

“I can’t say that the team doesn’t have them, but let’s count how many games we play in two days on the third or three days on the fourth – after the match with Obolon we played Roma, Shakhtar, Vorskla, Ingulets, then we left for Hamburg, finally -they played here. Perhaps this is a normal schedule, when normal logistical conditions have been created for the team. And when you spend 18-20 hours on the road… That’s why we often resort to rotation, sometimes I replace players so that they are fresher for the next match.”

“Wouldn’t it be easier to play in neighboring countries – Poland or Romania? To be honest, it was not me who dealt with this issue. Of course, logistics does not give us any additional advantages – that’s clear.”

Dynamo scored twice in the first half – Vladislav Vanat and Andriy Yarmolenko, who converted a penalty, scored. Let us remind you that Andrei scored his 110th UPL goal in his career. At the end of the second half, Polesie managed to win one goal back.

Dynamo takes first place in the UPL, gaining 32 points and ahead of Alexandria in additional indicators. In the next round, the Kiev team will host Chernomorets on November 23.