Rarely has Ukrainian football resembled a nation which has been administered professionally, liberated of corruption and sleaze and glorified by the on-field exploits of their domestic clubs in venerated continental races. After seasons of underachievement in European competition and trailing in the wake of their rivals, fortunes are for once set to change for the better. The all-Ukrainian duel in one of the UEFA Cup semi-finals offers a beacon of optimism for a nation that prosperity and fame just never came to, even if the seven deadly sins did.
Ahead of their 2007 UEFA Champions League conquest, Shakhtar Donetsk manager Mircea Lucescu spoke of his hope of European success, saying "We have all the attributes for success, a talented squad, great training facilities, a passionate and wealthy owner. I hope this is Shakhtar's year." Subsidised by the bankrolls of Rinat Akhmetov, Shakhtar had every belief they could instigate a memorable impact by advancing as far as the knockout stage. From the summer transfer window that had passed, $70 million of capital was loosened in the transfer kitty to invest and attract the deluxe batch of footballers from Europe and South America – the convincing and compelling blueprints of a striving outfit who were unwavering in their pursuit for grandeur and majestic silverware. Grouped together with AC Milan, Celtic and Benfica, the likelihood of qualification transformed from an idealistic fantasy to a pragmatic realisation.
That is all you need to know about the recent destiny of Ukrainian clubs in Europe as there is little afterthought beyond the ill-advised hype and excitement. Shakhtar wallowed in fourth, and last, position in Group D, while Dynamo Kyiv suffered a similar fate in Group F by losing all six of their encounters. Vast expenditure failed to converge with silverware, while reasons to remain buoyant were all-too short in stature and, more noteworthy, excuses could not originate from the lack of resources. The coup of signing $27 million Mexican winger Nery Castillo once again illuminated the promise but Ukraine’s most expensive transfer story was to turn so immediately unpleasant that by the following January, the desperation to leave would become so great that he would fund half of the £3m loan settlement to Manchester City out of his own pocket. Arriving as a technically-gifted and versatile pacey striker who had earned rave reviews from his days at Olympiacos, Castillo left under more than just a haze of sadness and despondency and Shakhtar were left regretting their purchase in one of history’s catastrophic moves. It would be a fitting diagnosis to sum up the state of the country’s football. Ukraine’s financial valour was undisputed, its potential remained absolute but somewhere along the way results simply had to change – and this long-awaited prophecy could finally materialise in 2009 and verify the budding threat of Eastern Europe to its Western neighbours.
Three representatives in the UEFA Cup Knockout stages and ten victories in the Champions League [including qualifiers] between Dynamo Kyiv and Shakhtar Donetsk, with the latter duo creating the first all-Ukrainian semi-final in the UEFA Cup, has thrust confidence skywards with one legion of fans set to march on Istanbul in the hope of landing on cloud nine. The nation’s two powerhouses may have both been eliminated from the Champions League but their UEFA Cup trapdoor threw them a blessing in disguise and neither will settle for mediocrity at such an imperative phase. This zealous rivalry usually lays duel to the domestic title, apart from this sole occasion, a glimpse of history that may just eclipse the glossiest feat either can boast in the 21st century. Shakhtar Donetsk cannot afford to dispense with anymore accolades, particularly to their capital-rivals, as only the timely intervention of a miracle can impede Dynamo’s charge at the Premier League.
Shakhtar Donestsk’s European escapades have secured the future of Romanian coach Mircea Lucescu for an additional two years and the chance to stamp his name amongst the legends of the club and its illustrious folklore is open by accomplishing a double, but Bilo-Syni will have be vanquished more than once if Dynamo Kiev aren’t to fulful an astonishing treble. Form over the season strongly implies that Dynamo Kiev will be given the luxury of the ‘toxic’ favourites tag as they lay twelve points ahead of their loathed foe. One word to summarise Dynamo’s offensive line would be formidable having generated a fearsome tally of 60 goals, 23 more than what Shakhtar can profess and double their escalating goal-difference.
Pride, dignity and esteem are returning to the former Soviet state, albeit the transformation back to one of the game’s heavyweights still remains a slow and arduous process, and as Zenit St Petersburg’s national holding midfielder Anatoliy Tymoschuk told UkrainianSoccer.net, “I think that football in Ukraine is truly on the rise. Probably, because we were getting ready for so many years and moving towards earning the European trophy.”
Admiration is finally being drawn from outside Ukraine and the days as cannon-fodder for the elite could be a nightmare from the past as the chapter of a new beginning unravels. For the rest in the country it is a classic scenario of continuing the status quo with economical hardship still battering the decks of lower-tier outfits and watching the latest scandal expand to an even greater crisis.
Statistics
The best performance by a Ukrainian club in Europe was a decade ago in 1999, when Dynamo Kyiv made it through to the semi-final stage of the Champions League. They lost to Bayern Munich 4-3 on aggregate and were unable to complement their 1975 and 1986 European Cup Winners' Cup medallions, which they won as a Soviet state.
Ukraine have so far pulled off the most impressive haul of average coefficient points in the season of 2008/09 - meaning Ukrainian teams have, on average, performed more competently than their rivals from abroad. The figures work by the total points tally divided by the number of participating clubs in European competition from that specific nation. Ukraine stand first with 14.875, England lies second with 14.222 and Spain in third with 12.687.
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