Myhaylychenko indebted to medics

FC Dynamo Kyiv coach Oleksiy Myhaylychenko revealed he owed a debt of thanks to the medical staff at the Ukrainian club who ensured Brazilian striker Diogo Rincón was able to come on as a substitute against FC Lokomotiv Moskva – and score the two late goals that earned Dynamo a crucial victory in this UEFA Champions League Group B tie at the Valeri Lobanovskiy stadium.

Injury scare
Myhaylychenko explained how the Brazilian had been considered unlikely to play because of injury, but the 23-year-old showed no ill-effects during a stunning performance. "Diogo Rincón was doubtful before the game due to an injury, but our doctors managed to help him out and that proved to be decisive," Myhaylychenko said.

'It's great'
Rincón could not contain his delight. "I've been waiting for the Champions League for the whole year and I wanted to take part in this tie very much, but I was not sure if I would be among the starting eleven due to injury," he said. "Now I'm just happy to have helped my team earn a win over Lokomotiv, it’s great."

Turning point
Rincón turned a match that had appeared to be running away from Dynamo in the second half. The home side had enjoyed much of the possession and had created chances during the first 45 minutes, only to appear short of ideas as Lokomotiv grew in strength after the break. Rincón, who replaced Oleg Gusev on 62 minutes, provided a target in the Lokomotiv box and the gamble paid off five minutes from time when he headed in Valentin Belkevich’s cross.

Second goal
The pair teamed up again six minutes later to finally kill off the Russian challenge in a match Myhaylychenko deemed vital to win if his side are to challenge group favourites Arsenal FC and Internazionale FC for a place in the knockout stages.

'Grabbed the win'
"It was essential for us to get three points here, that's why we concentrated on defending our goal," the coach said. "However, Lokomotiv produced some close counterattacks, which reminded us to act even more carefully. Thankfully we started to speed up after the break and grabbed the win."

'An even game'
Indeed, were it not for superb saves in each half as Oleksander Shovkovskiy blocked Vladimir Maminov then Dmitri Khokhlov, the story might have been quite different. "It was an even game and I can't say we lost it tactically," Yuri Semin, the Lokomotiv coach, said. "I think that our lack of composure and Dynamo's class told."

'Furious support'
He added: "Unfortunately we conceded a goal late in the second half, and by then it was too late to make any significant change. Of course we wanted to equalise, that's why we rushed up front, which allowed Dynamo to score their second. Not to mention their fans, whose furious support helped the home side greatly."

'Won't lose heart'
Semin admitted his side’s late collapse was cause for concern, but insisted Lokomotiv are by no means out of the Group B equation. "The most important thing is to play at full throttle for the entire 90 minutes, not just for 83," he said. "But we won't lose heart - there are still five matches to play, so we have the chance to move up the table."