Party postponed

The fate of the post-Soviet derby will be decided in Moscow

Yesterday at the central Shakhtar stadium in Donetsk the first match of the 3rd qualifying round of the Champions League was played between the vice-champion of Ukraine Shakhtar and the current champion of Russia Lokomotiv Moscow. The hard-fought match ended in Shakhtar's victory - 1:0.

For the second time in the history of the Champions League, representatives of the two main football powers of the former USSR meet in head-to-head confrontation. Nine years ago, Dynamo Kiev and Spartak were sorting things out. And although Shakhtar and Lokomotiv are not so popular (as well as unpopular) at home, their confrontation seems significant.

Our champion in the last league made it to the second group stage, and it’s no good for him to retire so early. Lokomotiv overcame the initial crisis and reached the championship level of play. The leaders have recovered from their injuries, lost their fatigue and are ready to show their best. The “red-greens” and the additional application campaign were successfully carried out. Mikhail Ashvetia and Dmitry Khokhlov organically joined Yuri Semin’s ensemble, as if they had been playing for Loko all their lives. Brazilians Leandro and Jorge are still unknown to the Russian public. But most importantly, Lokomotiv remained the only delegate from Russia in the main European tournament and is simply obliged to stand up for the honor of our football.

Shakhtar Donetsk is a kind of unique player. The team, owned by the richest man in Ukraine, Rinat Akhmetov, is considered the wealthiest not only in Ukraine and the former USSR, but throughout Eastern Europe. A young entrepreneur from a not very prosperous region of Ukraine prefers to invest money in his favorite toy called “Miner”. From the new coach Bernd Schuster they expect not only domestic victories, but also success in the Champions League. That's why Croatian goalkeeper Stipe Pletikosa, his compatriot midfielder Shrna, Serbian forward Vukic, and Romanian midfielder Rat were bought. Each of them drew the amount with six zeros in USD. (for one Vukich they had to pay almost 5 million) and each of them was in demand in the West, but ended up in the Donbass. And with all due respect to the Lokomotiv players, the opponent’s lineup looked somewhat more impressive. But who is coach Shuster compared to Yuri Pavlovich? Soldiers win battles, but commanders lose.

The course of the first half confirmed numerous assumptions about an equal and stubborn fight. Suffice it to say that the first serious moment in the match occurred at the Loko goal only in the 39th minute. But Ovchinnikov brilliantly parried Belik's point-blank blow. And in the 55th minute an event happened that will certainly add to the collection of referee actions against our teams. During the execution of an ordinary and completely harmless free kick, Swiss referee Busacca suddenly stopped the game and pointed to the 11-meter mark. Shakhtar made every effort to build on their success. The Muscovites held out and maintained a quite acceptable score before the return match. Everything will be decided in Moscow.

Oleg TIMOFEEV