Today, on July 31, Dynamo Kyiv will play the return match against Partizan Serbia in the second qualifying round of the Champions League, which will decide the fate of the capital's club in the main club tournament. UNN decided to recall the first qualifying match, in which Kyiv defeated the "fans of Russia", to tell about the history of confrontations between the two teams, where to watch the return match and who is the favorite of the bookmakers.
Stadium, referee team, broadcast
Tonight at 21:00, Dynamo Kyiv will play the return leg of the Champions League qualifying match against Partizan Belgrade at the Partizan Stadium. The match will be held without fans due to UEFA sanctions imposed on the Belgrade club.
In September 2023, Partizan was banned from playing its next two home European Cup matches in the presence of spectators, one of them conditionally.
Thus, UEFA punished Partizan for the discriminatory and racist behavior of the fans following last year's qualifying match against Danish side Nordsjælland in the Conference League qualifiers.
The game will be broadcast live on 2+2 TV channel, Dynamo TV channel, and you can also watch the match on Dynamo Kyiv's Youtube channel.
Romanian specialist Marian Barbu has been appointed as the main referee, assisted by his compatriots Mihai Marica and Imre Laszlo Buksi. Sebastian Coltescu has been appointed reserve referee.
Barbu has once faced Ukrainian teams. It happened in the fourth round of the Conference League between Vaduz and Dnipro-1 in 2022, in which the Dnipro club won 2-1.
Start in the Champions League qualifiers
In the first round of the Champions League qualifiers in Lublin (Poland), Oleksandr Shovkovskyi's team defeated "lovers of riding to Moscow" with a score of 6:2.
Goals were scored by Mykola Shaparenko, Volodymyr Brazhko, Oleksandr Karavayev, Vladyslav Kabaev, Denys Popov and Oleksandr Pikhalenok.
Saldanha scored a double for the Serbs.
Before that match, the Ukrainian club canceled all bilateral events with the Serbian Partizan because of their participation in competitions in Russia. The club stated that they condemned the support of Russian sports, but were ready to compete with any opponent on the field.
In July, Partizan played three friendly games in a tournament in Moscow called the "Brotherly Cup" against Lokomotiv Moscow, Dynamo Moscow, and CSKA Moscow.
During the first match, Dynamo Kyiv players refused to shake hands with Partizan players, greeting them with "fists" as they did during COVID-19. Also, captain Vitaliy Buyalsky did not shake hands with the Partizan captain during the halfway line.
Preparing for the return match
After the first match, Dynamo Kyiv remained in Lublin and prepared for the return match in the usual weekly cycle, alternating training on the green field with the gym and theory, as the new season of the Ukrainian championship has not yet begun.
Yesterday afternoon, Shovkovsky's wards arrived in Belgrade.
The coaching staff of Kyiv took the following players with them to Serbia:
- Goalkeepers: Heorhiy Bushchan, Ruslan Neshcheret, Denys Ihnatenko, Valentyn Morgun;
- Defenders: Vladyslav Dubinchak, Denys Popov, Christian Bilovar, Maksym Dyachuk, Kostiantyn Vivcharenko, Brian Ceballos, Naveen Malysh, Taras Mykhavko;
- Midfielders: Vitalii Buyalskyi, Oleksandr Andriievskyi, Oleksandr Karavayev, Andrii Yarmolenko, Mykola Shaparenko, Vladyslav Kabaev, Naza Voloshyn, Samba Diallo, Anton Tsarenko, Volodymyr Brazhko, Oleksandr Pikhalonok, Justin Lonwijk;
- The attackers: Vladyslav Supryaha, Vladyslav Vanat, Matviy Ponomarenko.
At the same time, Partizan has already played two rounds in the Serbian league, defeating Napredak 1-0 and defeating the newcomer to the top division, Edinstvo, 4-0. After two rounds, Partizan, having gained maximum points and not conceding a single goal, leads the standings.
In the match against Edinstvo, Partizan fans hung a banner to remind them of the defeat by Dynamo.
"In Lublin, six pieces is a real picture of your work," the poster reads.
History of confrontations
Dynamo Kyiv has won all of its matches against Partizan Serbia. Dynamo and Partizan played for the first time back in 1976 in the 1976/77 European Champions Cup. Then Valeriy Lobanovsky's team defeated Partizan 3-0.
In the return match, Dynamo defeated the Serbian team 2-0.
The teams met for the third time only 40 years later, in 2017, during the group stage of the Europa League. That match was also held without fans. The first half in Belgrade was not successful for the White and Blues, as Oleksandr Hatskevich's men were 2-0 down by the 45th minute of the match.
But thanks to a double by naturalized Brazilian Junior Moraes and a goal by Buyalsky, Kyiv managed to pull out a strong-willed victory.
In the final round, Kyiv confidently defeated Partizan 4-1 at home. Moraes scored a hat-trick and Mykola Morozyuk scored another goal.
Bookmakers' favorite
Following Dynamo's convincing victory, bookmakers are giving Shovkovsky's team odds of 1.81. Bets on Partizan's victory are accepted with a score of 4.40. The odds for a draw are 4.
Before the match, Partizan head coach Oleksandr Stanoevych said that his team would take the field today to impress.
"After a poor performance in the first match, tomorrow we will take to the pitch to make an impression. We are to blame for the bad result in Lublin, so we need to fight to rehabilitate ourselves. We will fight for the Partizan emblem. Every game in Europe is important, both for Serbian football and the odds. We will go into the match with great energy," Stanojevic said.
The coach also assessed his team's chances of progressing further, noting that "hope dies last."
"Hope dies last, but the reality is quite different, especially when you don't have the support of the fans. In football, you never know whether you will score an early goal, but the most important thing is to show that we are fighting for Partizan," added the Partizan head coach.
If Dynamo moves on, the White and Blues will play against Scottish Rangers.