In the home match of the 14th round of the Ukrainian championship, Dynamo lost to SC Poltava 1:2. It was Ihor Kostyuk’s debut as acting head coach of the first team.
Match events
The match took place on Monday, December 1. SC Poltava came into the meeting as a league newcomer and sat last in the table with six points before the game; their previous win had come in August over Veres — 1:0.
The hosts held the initiative for most of the match. The first real chance arose after a combination between Pikhalyonok and Buyalskyi: the latter passed to Voloshyn, who shot low past the post. Overall, Dynamo dominated possession, but the visitors were compact in defense.
In first-half stoppage time the Poltava side broke the deadlock. After a quick counterattack Marusic cut the ball in from the left, and Odaryuk’s low shot from close range found the far corner — 0:1.
The second half lacked high intensity. Early on, Halenkov’s shot hit the net, but the goal was ruled out. Soon after, Poltava managed to double their lead: a cross finished with a precise strike from Misyura — 0:2.
The Kyiv side reduced the deficit immediately after a double substitution, when Redushko and Yatsyk came on. Redushko provided the assist, and Yatsyk headed the ball into the net — 1:2.
Comment from Ihor Kostyuk
"We emphasized that we needed to transition to attack more quickly. And not to allow the moments the opponent created. Although there weren't many of them, concentration in defense needed to be higher. Today we were not ready for that kind of battle. And, of course, in attack we lacked freshness. I told the players they needed to do everything faster. Unfortunately, we conceded the second goal. Today we executed many set pieces, but we did not create chances from them to score. In the end we got one goal back, but there wasn't enough time for more… Of course, the team is in a depressed state after the game. Everyone is upset. We hope we will pull together, create an atmosphere in which the lads will lift their heads. We have a little time to get our physical condition up for the next game, so we will do everything to perform better in that regard"
– Ihor Kostyuk
Positions in the standings
After the win, SC Poltava has nine points and remains in last place. Dynamo suffered their fourth consecutive defeat in the championship and drop to 7th position with 20 points.
