LUCHESKU: “We have only one goalkeeper left. And we took a 17-year-old keeper "
Dynamo head coach held a press conference before the game against Rennes
Dynamo Kyiv head coach Mircea Lucescu held a press conference at the Cracovia Stadium in Krakow the day before the UEFA Europa League Group Stage 4 match against French Rennes.
- Mister, what is the situation with Boyko's injury and how prepared is Neshcheret for the match against Rennes?
- We have only one healthy goalkeeper left - Neshcheret. And he, of course, will play with Rennes. Ruslan has been training with us not so long ago, only 10 days have passed since he recovered from his injury. However, we trust him and believe in his best qualities.
Boyko's injury is almost the same as Shaparenko's - the cruciate ligament. Denis will remain out of football for six months. At a consultation in Barcelona, he was told that an operation was needed.
Due to personnel problems in the goalkeeper position, another goalkeeper, 17-year-old Avramenko, has now joined our team.
- How do you feel in Krakow, where Dynamo play home matches?
- Yes, we nominally play home matches here, but rather we play on a neutral field. Although this is not such a big problem, constant moving brings more difficulties. The road from Lviv to Krakow takes at least 7 hours, so the recovery of players after matches is the main problem. Perhaps that is why the last match was lost at the last minute, we did not have enough functional readiness. However, you need to play with a cool head, wait for your chance and show support for Ukraine through football.
– Where did the recent massive missile strikes across the entire territory of Ukraine find the team?
– We were just on our way, moving from Lviv to Krakow. We arrived in Poland quite late, but still had a training session in the evening on the field near the hotel, where there was no good lighting. We also had a training there yesterday, but I think it's even better. This trains the players confidence, concentration and interaction with partners.
- After three rounds in the Europa League, Dynamo are in fourth position in their group. How would you rate the first half of the group stage?
– Unfortunately, the result is disappointing. It happened because we have a lot of injured players and we didn't manage to make the transfers we wanted to make. As for the game, in my opinion, the guys are trying and giving their best. We didn't deserve to lose all three of those games. We continue to work and try to demonstrate our best game.
- Do you think it is necessary to play against Shakhtar in Lviv this weekend?
- At first it was planned that the match would be held in London, everything was planned out. However, during the last Russian attacks, we were in Lviv, the players heard and felt everything. They worry and worry about their families. It seems to me that returning to Lviv now may not be the best idea.
We suggested several options: to play in Warsaw, in Krakow, or in Lviv, but a little later - on Monday or Tuesday, since Shakhtar played yesterday, and we are playing tomorrow. We will have very little time to recover and move, we will be able to do a maximum of one training session. Therefore, we are waiting for a response from Shakhtar, UAF and UPL.
It was at the same time that these missile attacks were taking place that we had a scheduled drill. But we were allowed to go abroad, so plans changed. This is not our decision, we need to find a common solution in this situation. We offer alternative options and are waiting for a response.