I am short on time so no strategy discussions or predictions for now. All I am going to say is it will be war on the pitch, and I can’t wait to see what happens. Good luck Dynamo!

It is now a certainty that Dynamo will have to cope the rest of the season without vice-captain Taras Mykhalyk. Mykhalyk underwent surgery to repair the damage to his knee he suffered in the UPL match against Metalurh Donetsk. The recovery time is expected to be around six months. Dynamo will have to continue relying on the central defensive pairing of Goran Sablic and Ayila Yussuf. Meanwhile PSG have received a boost as left back Sylvain Armand was deemed fit enough to travel with the squad to Kiev. It is still uncertain whether he will be ready to play.

Yuri Semin planned to rest most of his key players this weekend as Dynamo hosted Chornomorets Odessa. But after the visitors canceled out Andriy Nesmachniy’s spectacular opener, the manager brought on Milevskiy and Oleksandr Aliyev for the final half hour. Aliyev capped the match with a trademark free kick after Serhiy Kravchenko restored the lead with a long range strike of his own. Ismael Bangoura played the full 90 in another uninspired performance, and his initial attacking partner Andriy Yarmolenko did not impress in his hour long shift. With Artem Kravets officially ruled out, there is a lot of speculation about which forward Semin will turn to. Despite the rumors that newcomer Guilherme will make his long awaited debut, my gut feeling is Semin will go with his most proven player. And that means Bangoura will be the one to partner Milevskiy up front. The Guinean striker has yet to score this year, but his experience against Ligue 1 opposition, his apparent fitness, and his track record make him the logical choice. Bangoura is desperate to find the back of the net and silence his doubters, and we should expect to see his best effort today.

PSG had their share of openings at Parc des Princes, but their inability to find the final ball is the reason this tie is still scoreless. The attacking presence of Giuly was sorely missed, but boss Le Guen has yet to waiver when it comes to using the veteran winger in the UEFA Cup. It is clear that his priorities lie in Ligue 1, where goal differential is all that separates his side from a Champions League qualifying spot. As much as a shot at European silverware could mean for PSG supporters, finding a way back into the Champions League and the resulting financial windfall is far more important for the club. Which is why I think Giuly and Makelele are certain to start on the bench today.

Semin’s charges have played attacking football at home against all opponents, and the results speak for themselves. PSG will find it much harder to generate their own offense in front of the Kiev faithful. Dynamo’s edge in possession during the first leg will be even more apparent today, and they should be able to establish it in the attacking half of the pitch. I think Dynamo will be able to break the French resistance inside the first half hour, and how they will play with a goal advantage will determine the outcome of the match. If Dynamo can convert its counters better than they did against the likes of Arsenal, Porto, and Metalist, it will be a long night for PSG. But if the visitors are allowed to stay within a goal to the end, there will always be the possibility of another heartbreak. Prediction: Dynamo 2 – 0 PSG. Goals from Milevskiy and Bangoura, bring on Shakhtar!

PSG had recently gone through some lean years, including having to survive a relegation battle in 2006/2007. Despite the appointment of manager Paul Le Guen late that season, the two-time French champions found themselves even closer to the abyss next year, needing to win its final two matches to avoid the drop. However the former skipper righted the Paris ship this year, and his side are just four points from the top of the table in the first contested Ligue 1 race since the turn of the century. A Coupe de la Ligue title in 2008 earned PSG a spot in the UEFA Cup, and the Paris club has enjoyed showing off its improved form all over Europe.

The success of this year’s team can be largely attributed to several key additions brought in by Le Guen, which have helped solidify the existing core of veteran players. Top scorer Guillaume Hoarau has impressed since his summer move from Le Havre AC, whom he helped earn top flight status the previous season. The towering 24 year old will present an aerial challenge for the Dynamo defense. Midfielders Ludovic Giuly and Claude Makélélé brought with them the experience of winning the Champions League trophy for Europe’s top clubs when Le Guen acquired their services before the season. Another veteran of European finals joins them in midfield in the form of Jérôme Rothen, Giuly’s former AS Monaco teammate. Captain Makalelele has found an able partner in the center of the pitch in Beninese midfielder Stéphane Sessegnon, another newcomer from Le Mans. Jerome Clement rounds out the PSG midfield, having followed Le Guen from his previous stop at Glasgow Rangers.

PSG has had its share of defensive troubles this season, and Le Guen has fielded a rotating cast of characters in front of Mickaël Landreau. His task of keeping Dynamo off the scoreboard will be made that much tougher because of the injury to left back Sylvain Armand. Dynamo will also be missing an important defensive piece after losing standout center back Taras Mykhalyk to a damaged meniscus in its 2-0 victory at Metalurh Donetsk. He will likely be replaced by Ayila Yussuf, who made his first start since a September injury in the same match.

Without the services of the injured Artem Kravets and with Ismael Bangoura still looking to find his form after an unimpressive 45 minutes against Metalurh D, Semin is likely to play with one striker in the away leg of this quarterfinal. Here’s the eleven I anticipate will start the match:

———————-Bohush———————
Betao——Yussuf—-Sablic——-El Kaddouri
——————–Vukojevic——————–
Correa———Eremenko————-Ninkovic
———————-Aliyev———————-
———————Milevskiy——————–

Dynamo will be boosted by Ognjen Vukojevic’s return from suspension. The Croatian midfielder nodded in the second goal against Metalurh D. Oleksandr Aliyev, who opened the scoring from the spot, is a booking away from having to sit out a match himself. Artem Milevskiy appears to be no worse for wear after taking a stud to the cheek last weekend. Guilherme and Andriy Yarmolenko have both made the trip to Paris, but if another attacker has to be brought on it would likely be Bangoura, who has plenty of experience with French opposition. Oleh Husyev and Serhiy Kravchenko will probably be the other likely options off the bench.

Roman Eremenko played the entire match in the holding midfielder role for Finland alongside older brother Aleksei, as their side overcame Wales 2-0 in Cardiff. The away victory lifts the Finns into third place in their qualifying group, but their chances of catching favorites Germany and Russia remain slim. Milos Ninkovic was said to have recovered from the knock he received in the match against Arsenal Kyiv, but he did not make the team sheet for Serbia’s match at Romania. Serbia won the encounter 3-2 and lead their group. Fellow Dynamo midfielder Ognjen Vukojevic will have to wait until Wednesday when his Croatia team travel to Andorra. Croatia are level with Ukraine for the second spot in their group but have played one more match.

African nations featuring Dynamo players did not fare so well in their qualifying matches. Badr El Kaddouri’s 90 minutes of work were for naught as Morocco suffered a disappointing 1-2 home defeat to Gabon. With only one team advancing from a group that also includes Cameroon and Togo, Morocco already faces an uphill battle after just the first round. Ismael Bangoura’s Guinea fell to Burkina Faso 4-2 in an away match, with the Dynamo striker coming on for the final half hour but not getting on the score sheet.

Maksim Shatskikh played the first hour of Uzbekistan’s 4-0 rout of Qatar, but his side has almost no chance to catch runaway group leaders Australia and Japan. In U-21 action, several Dynamo players took part in Ukraine’s scoreless draw with Serbia. Andriy Yarmolenko had the unfortunate distinction of failing to convert a penalty and hitting the crossbar on the followup attempt.

In recent years Arsenal has become a proving ground for young Dynamo players, with quite a number of them heading out on loan across town. But relying on players contracted to other clubs can be a risky proposition as manager Oleksandr Zavarov recently found out. The former Dynamo great was left to cope without two major contributors when Dynamo sold midfielder Denys Oliynyk to Metalist Kharkiv and recalled defender Vitaliy Mandzyuk. In addition as part of their loan deals Volodymyr Lysenko and Andrey Eshchenko are prohibited from playing against Dynamo.

Oleh Husyev saw his longest stretch of playing time yet as he started the second half and looked to be rounding into shape. Milos Ninkovic had to be substituted after suffering a painful knock but the injury is not believed to be serious. Ayila Yussuf got another taste of competitive football, featuring for the final quarter hour. It was good to see the Nigerian midfielder back on the pitch after an extended absence with a thigh muscle injury. He could be a difference maker for Dynamo as they hope to continue competing on three fronts through the end of the season.

Several potential first team players participated in the youth team encounter between the two clubs, resulting in a 6-0 cakewalk for Dynamo. Mandzyuk, Diogo Rincon, and Guilherme started the match, while Florin Cernat and Maksim Shatskikh came on as substitutes. All eyes were on the record signing from Brazil, but it was the Ukrainian youngsters who shined. Andriy Yarmolenko opened the scoring while Roman Zozulya’s hat trick made him the clear man of the match. The pair of 19 year old attackers will find opportunities with the senior team hard to come by as Dynamo’s injury list thins out, but their performances should earn another look from Semin. If Dynamo clinches the UPL championship with games to spare we should see the pair featured in the final matches of the season.

The conditions at Metalist Stadium were never going to allow Dynamo to play the one-touch passing game that is their hallmark. The pouring rain and a pitch that resembled a swamp more than a professional playing surface played into the hands of the hosts. With their 30,000 fans loudly behind them, Metalist started the match on the front foot. Without the services of suspended Ognjen Vukojevic Dynamo manager Yuri Semin started Badr El Kaddouri and Roman Eremenko in the center of midfield. Although the duo could not be faulted for their work rate, the presence of the Croatian destroyer was clearly missed. Ukraine internationals Serhiy Valyayev and Valentyn Slyusar took full advantage of Vukojevic’s absence, controlling the middle of the pitch and granting the hosts the bulk of early possession. Marko Devic kept popping up between Dynamo’s defense and midfield looking for a seam to sneak through, but Taras Mykhalyk and the choppy turf denied him anything resembling a scoring chance.

On the half hour the hosts got a set piece opportunity and took full advantage. Walter Acevedo’s service from the left reached the head of Slyusar, and with his back to goal the midfielder redirected the ball into the far corner with a neat flick. Dynamo’s hard-earned advantage was erased, and we had a brand new tie on our hands. The visitors looked for an immediate response, and Oleksandr Aliyev’s free kick from 30 meters out tested Oleksandr Goryainov, but the Metalist captain was able to parry the ball out of the top corner. From the ensuing corner Goran Sablic saw his header deflected wide, and on the subsequent attempt the veteran defender got his head on the ball once again but could not hit the target. Five minutes later Artem Milevskiy received Aliyev’s pass inside the Metalist area with his back to goal, and elegantly spun around on his marker Papa Gueye. But with the massive defender draped all over his back, Milevskiy pushed his shot just wide of the right post.

The pitch continued to play tricks on the players from both teams, with the ball unpredictably skidding along the wet grass and sometimes stopping dead when encountering a puddle. Dynamo went unpunished when Betao could not anticiapte the movement of the ball properly in his own area with Jaja Coelho lurking, but the striker could not get to the ball in time. Metalist looked to be running out of gas near the end of the half, falling asleep on defense and allowing Artem Kravets a shot from a sharp angle. Goryainov spilled the rebound, but there were no Dynamo players close enough to capitalize. Moments later the hosts gave the ball away in their own end gifting Kravets another chance, but the keeper was up to the task once again. Metalist manager Myron Markevych looked relieved to have his troops get to the locker room before making another blunder.

Dynamo started the second half like they ended the first, and Aliyev was desperately unlucky when his shot struck the post, rolling across the mouth of the goal but never crossing the line. With ten minutes played lightning struck for Metalist. Jaja won a free kick some 30 meters out, and stepped up to the ball himself. The Brazilian’s left-footed strike bent around the Dynamo wall, skipping off the turf and into the net past a helpless Stanyslav Bohush, and just like that the hosts were in front. Both sides made changes, with Ninkovic replacing Carlos Correa and Denys Oliynyk on for Devic. With Dynamo attacks not coming close in the next ten minutes, Semin sent on Oleh Husyev for Andriy Nesmachniy, with El Kaddouri shifting to left back. The move energized the offense in more ways than one, as the Moroccan defender injected some pace on Dynamo’s left flank that Nesmachniy sorely lacks. It was there that the visitors won a free kick, and Aliyev sent a telling cross into the box. Milevskiy looked certain to get on the end of it but managed just a slight touch, which was enough to freeze Goryainov and send the ball trickling across the face of the goal. Waiting at the back post Sablic did with his foot what he was unable to do with his head, and Dynamo was on the board. But their celebration was short lived. Literally on their next trip up field, Metalist won a throw, and Jonathan Maidana headed on the long toss towards the penalty spot. Valyaev was able to control it for the hosts and touch the ball on to Slyusar, who made no mistake from point blank range and put his side back in the driver seat with twenty minutes to go.

Markevych looked to bolster his tiring defense with some fresh legs, and Berezovchuk came on for Vitaliy Bordiyan. It was not long before he would be wearing the goat horns. After Dynamo foiled a Metalist counterattack, El Kaddouri played the ball into Milevskiy, who held off three defenders before finding the overlapping run of Ninkovic with a clever back heel pass. The Serbian midfielder burst to the touchline and cut the ball back across the six yard box, and in an effort to keep it from reaching the feet of Husyev Berezovchuk instead managed to deflect it into his own goal. As the Metalist defender collapsed in disbelief, Dynamo players mobbed Ninkovic and celebrated their good fortune.

Aliyev did not make any friends in Kharkiv on this day as he gloated over the fallen Berezovchuk, and later spent a lot of time down on the turf receiving treatment as Dynamo proceeded to kill off the final ten minutes. After the match Aliyev said that it is “too early for Metalist to have this much success in Europe,” and that they needed to be “knocked down a peg,” words that are unlikely to be forgotten. Metalist certainly don’t have the depth or the experience of a club like Dynamo, but they fought valiantly and put a scare into the Ukrainian giants, even if they will never admit it. In the end the match was decided by fitness, and the Dynamo staff deserve full credit for the way the squad was prepared. Metalist players emptied their tanks as they took the game to Dynamo for 80 minutes, but when they needed another push their legs just weren’t there. Even if Kiev’s second goal did not go in when it did, I doubt the hosts would have had enough to keep Dynamo out until the final whistle. Even so, Metalist have a right be proud of their performance in Europe this season, and they will no doubt be motivated to get back on track in the league so they can return for another go next season.

With Shakhtar Donetsk’s convincing win over CSKA Moscow the UPL still has two clubs vying for a trophy in the competition. Ligue 1 can claim the same distinction, and it will be French clubs Paris Saint-Germain and Olympique de Marseille that will face Dynamo and Shakhtar, respectively. I will hold off my thoughts about the next round for another post, except to say that I am fairly pleased with the draw and the task in front of Dynamo is no bigger than ones they already handled.