Shakhtar edges archrival Dynamo 2-1 in Kyiv

Possessing a comfortable double-digit cushion perched on top of the Premiere League, Shakhtar Donetsk still had one more thing to prove this season: they’re superiority over archrival Dynamo Kyiv.

Henrikh
Mkhitaryan earned Shakhtar bragging rights yet again with a second half goal on
April 7 that decisively made it 2-1 in front of a capacity crowd at Kyiv’s Olympic
Stadium.  

Dynamo
dropped to third place with 47 points, trailing Metalist Kharkiv by two. The two teams, along with fourth-place Dnipro
Dnipropetrovsk – four points behind Metalist – will vie for the silver medal in
the premier league’s last seven matches to see who will join Shakhtar in the Champion’s
League next season.

It was
Dynamo’s third consecutive loss to the pitmen this year, losing 3-1 on Sept. 2
in their first-leg match at Donbass Arena, and a 4-1 elimination on Sept. 23 in
the Ukrainian Cup, also in Donetsk.

Play was
fierce and frantic from kickoff. Choppy and extremely physical play accompanied
every contested loose ball and pass, on the turf and in the air. Early on chief
referee Vitaliy Hodulyan struggled to control the emotionally charged match,
whose ferocity never ebbed.

But it was
Dynamo that struck first in the 10th minute. Forward Andriy Yarmolenko successfully
met a  block from Shahtar’s Vyacheslav Shevchuk at close range inside the
box. In the final minutes of the half, however, Shakhtar pressured. A series of
Shakhtar touches inside the box had Dynamo defender Danilo Silva commit an
own-goal in the 44th.

The half
ended with each side sharing 50 percent ball control, but Shakhtar looked more
composed.

Both sides
kept up the high level of intensity after the break. Led by Ideye Brown, Dynamo
created numerous chances. Most notable was the Nigerian’s shot in the 54th that
hit the cross bar, having only goalkeeper Andriy Pyatov to beat.

As Dynamo
missed opportunities, midfielder Mkhitaryan was in the right spot in the 75th to
confidently meet a deep cross delivered from the base line.

Dynamo
ended with 16 shots, twice more than Shakhtar. The visitors collected four
yellow cards and a red card, while Dynamo got booked for three yellows.

Dynamo
still dominates the overall rivalry with 18 wins, 12 draws and 13 losses to Shakhtar,
including a 61-47 goal advantage.

Ukrainian Premiere
League standings after Matchday 23

Kyiv Post editor Mark Rachkevych can be reached
at [email protected]