Porto – Dynamo: Champions League Thoughts

By: Yevy | October 25th, 2008

Aliyev Scores For too many years, Dynamo was a ship adrift in the choppy waters of Champions League football. Denied even single point in the group stage a year ago, and without a victory in four years, the semifinal appearance of 1999/2000 was a distant memory for the Kiev crew. But today voices of optimism can be heard from the White-Blue vessel – skipper Yuri Semin has spotted the promised land of the knockout round:

We’re very happy with this result because Dynamo were without a win in this competition for a long time, and because I think this is the club’s first victory in Portugal. Porto played very well but we managed to hang on and win. They have very good players with excellent technique on the ball but each and every one of my players excelled, especially the goalkeeper. We still have two home matches, and our objective is obviously to qualify and not just to finish third in the group.

The praise Semin heaped on his charges was indeed well deserved, and there’s little surprise Stanyslav Bohush was singled out by the manager. Dynamo came into the season with a large question mark between the posts. The failing form of veteran Oleksandr Shovkovskiy and the lack of experience among his deputies was seen as a possible Achilles heel of an improved squad. But after getting his chance in the first team, Bohush has piled up the clean sheets to silence the doubters. The 25 year old carried a nearly 700 minute league scoreless streak into the second half of Saturday’s match at Tavriya, and a late Arsenal goal is the only blemish on his Champions League record.

Mykhalyk and Diakhate Unlike the shots fired his way, Bohush would be wise to deflect the accolades towards the central defenders playing in front of him. The early-season success of Dynamo was built on the broad shoulders of Taras Mykhalyk and Pape Diakhate. The duo has foregone the usual tribulations of an untested defensive pairing, finding a common language and becoming an impenetrable obstacle in front of the Dynamo goal. Diakhate has impressed with his aerial prowess and determination to make every ball into the box his own. The Senegalese has endeared himself to the fans with his willingness to sacrifice his body for the good of the team. The emergence of Ukrainian international Mykhalyk as the leader of the defense is probably the revelation of the season so far. Always blessed with the physical gifts necessary for the position, Mykhalyk has developed the knack to intervene in attacks at precisely the moment of danger. While he may have lost a tooth in Porto, Mykhalyk no doubt earned the respect of his opponents.

The introduction of Artem Milevskiy in the second half changed the style of Dynamo’s attack and served as a reminder of what has been missing from the mix for almost two months. Milevskiy’s ability to play with his back to the goal and hold up the play cannot be duplicated by any of his club teammates or compatriots. Even lacking match fitness, Milevskiy’s class was evident as he was able to keep Porto defenders at bay while waiting for the midfielders to join the counterattack. So irreplaceable is the striker that in his absence coach Semin was forced to attack the group stage with a lone forward. And no one is happier to have Milevskiy back in the fold than Ismael Bangoura. I am sure we have not seen the last of the 4-5-1, given the results it has brought so far, but at least now Semin has the opportunity to deploy his two best offensive players at the same time.
Bangoura and Milevskiy