Rebrov working miracles as Dynamo coach
On the bus from a 3-0 league victory at FC Vorskla Poltava last November, star Dynamo Kyiv striker Andriy Yarmolenko burst out singing the Serhiy Rebrov fans’ song. In a matter of seconds his teammates joined in as a tribute to a coach who has totally turned around the soccer franchise since his arrival.
It was one year in April of this year since Oleh Blokhin’s dismissal and Rebrov’s taking charge of the squad. Many have stated the 40-year-old manager is working miracles in his position.
At the outset the plan was for Rebrov to act in a temporary capacity through the end of the 2013-2014 season. He was Blokhin’s assistant and it was a natural course to have him coach the rest of the campaign while club president Igor Surkis recruited a famous-name replacement from Western Europe. The country’s extremely unstable political situation, however, dissuaded Surkis’ targets from working in Ukraine, and in the interim temporary manager Rebrov established a strong rapport with his players. Rebrov led Dynamo to a most deserved Ukrainian Cup triumph over archrival Shakhtar Donetsk, 2-1, in the final on May 15, 2014.
The upset win over Shakhtar opened eyes. Mircea Lucescu’s club dominated Ukrainian soccer over a five-year span from 2010 through 2014, winning five consecutive league titles. Dynamo last won the Ukrainian Cup in 2007, enjoying success in 2009. It had been quite a while since Dynamo was mentioned as the nation’s top team and, in recent years, it had turned into an afterthought.
Dynamo’s downfall was swift: Metalist Kharkiv pushed it to third place in 2013, only to drop further to fourth, trailing Shakhtar, Dnipro and Metalist in 2014. Blokhin was out, Rebrov was in, subsequently promoted only to immediately win the cup.
After the finals win over Shakhtar, Congolese striker Dieumerci Mbokani went to Surkis and made the plea to have Rebrov remain as coach. The president agreed, setting goals of winning the title and qualifying for the Champions League.
Rebrov immediately delivered. Granted Shakhtar’s difficult situation of leaving its hometown due to the separatist war factored in, but Dynamo’s achievements speak very loudly. Achievements which can best be described as dynamic: Dynamo Kyiv clinched its 14th Ukrainian title with two games to spare on May 17 with a 1-0 win against Europa League finalists Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk. The victory ended the five-year dominance of Shakhtar Donetsk.
A personal coaching style
The team flourished after being freed of Blokhin’s strict training disciplines. A more relaxed environment made for happier players as the assistant transitioned into the role of head man. He’s no pushover, substituting for Yarmolenko in a Europa League game versus Aalborg because the star wasn’t working hard enough on defense. The decision did not rile Yarmolenko, who agreed with his coach’s move. Rebrov’s philosophy of being fair and sincere with his players was the most significant change under the new regime.
Rebrov may be a youngster in the coaching ranks, but during his vaunted playing career he learned from the best. The talented striker left Shakhtar for Dynamo in 1992 to form a fantastic partnership with the legendary Andriy Shevchenko in the late 1990s under the famous Valeriy Lobanovsky. He then tried the English Premier League at Tottenham and spent two years on loan at Fenerbahce (Turkey) where he worked with German specialists Werner Lorant and Christoph Daum. After not finding success with West Hampton in 2004-2005, he returned to Kyiv before finishing his career winning the Russian championship title at Rubin Kazan, learning from the famous Kurban Berdyev behind the bench. It was here that Rebrov began preparing himself for a possible future in coaching.
The Dynamo club benefited from another major influence thanks to Rebrov’s time at Rubin Kazan. Spanish physical trainer Raul Riancho joined the Ukrainian team at the start of 2014, after five years of employment at Kazan under Berdyev. When the veteran coach was fired in December 2013, Riancho answered Rebrov’s call by agreeing to work for Dynamo.
Indeed, the work of knowledgeable Spanish assistants played a big role in Dynamo Kyiv’s recent successes. The team’s fitness level has improved noticeably since Riancho established his training techniques. The more fit players could more readily implement the pressing tactics reminiscent of Lobanovsky’s great squads. Rebrov teaches ball control with quick moves and a philosophy of constant attack. Players’ self-confidence continues to grow as witnessed by a 5-2 thrashing of Everton in March – a feast of high-tempo attacking football that could have yielded many more goals.
Dynamo’s achievements under Rebrov have easily exceeded the most optimistic expectations. Surkis has acknowledged the changes as extraordinary, mentioning the training process, the atmosphere around the team and the players’ attitudes. There is no doubt team members believe in their manager and play for him. Rebrov will coach Dynamo for as long as he so desires.
Naturally, this will depend on Rebrov and how long he wants to continue this reclamation project. Down the road, he just may want to take his coaching skills abroad, like he did in his playing days. It is totally realistic, given his fluency in English from his days in London, that an organization like Tottenham or West Ham would welcome him back as a proven coach who turned Dynamo around one day.
Ihor Stelmach may be reached
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