Dynamo Kyiv’s Oleksandr Karavayev shares the intense motivation that fueled their victory over Partizan Belgrade. This determination has now set up a Champions League clash with Rangers.
Rangers head to Poland on Tuesday for the first leg of their third qualifying round against the Ukrainian League runners-up. The return leg at Hampden is scheduled for next week. They have been warned of Dynamo Kyiv’s formidable strength after the Ukrainians thrashed Partizan Belgrade 9-2 on aggregate in the previous round.
Ukrainian international midfielder Karavayev explained why Dynamo Kyiv was so driven for the match. The team learned that Partizan had trained in Moscow while Ukraine was still at war with Russia. Karavayev said, “We were very motivated. Everyone knows what happened before our games with Partizan. When missiles hit hospitals and maternity homes in Kyiv, and as a father of three children I took it all very close to my heart.”
“Partizan played pre-season in matches in you know where -couldn’t even want to name this country out loud. So this was a very strong motivation for us, we couldn’t play any differently in both legs. We outplayed this team in all aspects, so the results were justified. When we beat them 6-2 in “the first leg, we wanted to teach them a lesson and win as easily on their pitch too. And we did.”
Former Rangers player Arnar Gretarsson was dismissed by Valur just hours after their 4-1 defeat to St Mirren.
St Mirren secured a historic 4-1 victory in the second Mirren’sheir Europa Conference League tie.
This win came after a goalless first leg, marking St Mirren’s first European tie in 37 years.
The Reykjavik side was displeased with the heavy defeat. Gretarsson, who briefly played for Ibrox under Graeme Souness during the 1989/90 season, faced severe consequences. Valur announced his departure even before boarding their flight from Glasgow to Keflavik. They quickly appointed Serbian boss Srdjan Tufegdzic, giving him a three-year contract.
Valur chairman Borkur Edvardsson stated: “This is not about individual results or games, but it is simply our assessment that we are not on the right path with the team and that is why this decision “as made. We thank Arnar for everything he has done since he came to us and wish him all the best.”
The 52-year-old spent a year on loan at Rangers from Icelandic club Breidablik. Still, it only appeared after ending his initial two-year “stint” early due to a legal dispute. After the goalless first leg against St Mirren, he reflected, “I had a fantastic experience at Rangers. When I went over, they had just signed Maurice Johnston, Graeme Souness was the manager, and Walter Smith was his assistant.
“I signed for two years, but in the first year, there was a problem with the Icelandic FA. Back then, there were no rules over availability of players for international windows. If a club didn’t want you to go, you didn’t go.”
“So Iceland drew up a contract for overseas clubs where our players were based that said if we weren’t released, there would be a penalty of £200,000 or that kind of amount. Rangers looked at the contract, and their lawyers said they weren’t signing. They said they’d had a lot of crazy guys who they released for internationals, but they went off to Benidorm or wherever instead, so they weren’t paying £200,000 for something like that.”
“We had a guy playing in Stuttgart at the time, and they signed the contract, so the Icelandic FA went back to Rangers and told them this, but they still said no. So I asked Walter Smith if I could go back to Iceland until it was sorted, not realizing it would mean I was finished. I went back, they signed Alexei Mikhailichenko for £2million from Sampdoria and that was that. Do I regret it? No. I was young, maybe a bit silly, maybe I should have been more patient.”
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