Encounter of the second kind - in Kiev
by Myles Palmer
FEATURES
THE ARSENAL AGM - FULL WRITE UP
FIVE REASONS: ARSENAL COULD WIN IN BARCELONA
CARLTON AND ITV UPSET US AGAIN
JEKYLL AND HYDE PLAY THE NOU CAMP
Vitaly Galinsky, the press attache for the Ukrainian national team, speaks exemplary English. I met him at Wembley. So I phoned him in Kiev on Sunday morning. He said Shevchenko's ankle is OK and he will play. But Rebrov has a knee injury which they are worried about.
Vitaly said that Kiev have had offers from six Western clubs for Shevchenko, but that the club president would not sell him or Rebrov this season.
Kiev have played two Ukrainian league games since that entertaining and fascinating 1-1 draw at Wembley. They went a goal down to Metalurg Mariupul but won 2-1 with Shevchenko scoring both goals. Then they beat TZSKA 2-0 in very bad weather, heavy rain, last Friday. Vitaly said coach Lobanovsky was expecting a completely different game, and was aware that Petit and Vieira are good, especially Vieira.
When we watched Kiev train at Wembley on the Tuesday my pal Bob Cypryna talked to their reporters. They said that Ukraineís qualification for Euro 2000 was considered more important than the Champions League.that sounds about right.
Because Ukraine have won all three qualifying games so far, and Kiev have yet to win a Champions League match.
A year ago against PAOK, Arsene Wenger played Anelka and Wright in Salonica, a serious selection error. He should have gone 4-5-1 with Platt in midfield. At the time I thought it was worth the risk because you can lose more than you gain by changing formations. I thought changing the system would throw away eight weeks work. So I agreed with the gamble. But it did not come off. Anelka and Wright were pitiful in Salonica, Arsenal lost 1-0.Then drew 1-1 at Highbury. In hindsight it was a mistake to play a novice in that first leg.
Since then Anelka has improved. But, let's face it, Arsenal are never going to win this Champions League anyway. Nobody wins it at the first attempt. It takes a couple of seasons to get the hang of such a complex, demanding competition.
Basically, Arsenal's first eleven is good enough to beat Bayern Munich and good enough to give Juventus and Real Madrid a decent game. But with one or two of their first eleven missing they are not good enough to beat Dynamo Kiev.
Wenger knows that he lacks the squad to do the job. He should have signed two strikers to replace Wright and Hartson. And he should have signed Ljungberg sooner.
The Kiev game is interesting tactically because we all want to see if the pressing of warrior-athletes Petit and Vieira can force errors. Ultimately, however, this contest is not about football technicalities. It is about culture. It is about whether Arsenal culture is healthier than Kiev culture, whether Arsenal has a stronger, more competitive identity.
The Ukraine was repressed by Russian communists for 70 years. The Russians crushed their language, music and traditions. After only seven years of independence their new identity has not yet blossomed. Ukrainians, a talented people, don't yet have the confidence and expertise to compete with the west.
In football they do not have the the aggression and ambition to compete with the ruthless mercenaries of Italy, Spain, Germany and England. So how did they thrash Barcelona 3-0 in the Nou Camp? That was because the Kiev players got mad when Barca refused to let them train on the pitch and gave them a horrible dressing room.
Two weeks ago some Kiev journalists scoffed after Arsenal huffed and puffed to that 1-1 draw. They said,"British soccer is so primitive." They believe that Kiev play modern football and Arsenal play ancient football.
But Arsenal are top of the group and Kiev are bottom. Why? Because Ukrainian culture has been suppressed for so long. And because Kiev concentrate on being as good as possible while Arsenal concentrate on winning.
Kiev are brilliant at everything except winning tight matches. People see their one-touch passing, their automatic movement into the right spaces, their dazzling intelligence. But they fail to see the historical, political and cultural context in which they Kiev players live and work.
Kiev dominate Ukrainian football too much. Like Glasgow Rangers they need serious weekly competition to sharpen them up. They have a wonderfully skilful and cerebral style of play, masterminded by a scientific coach who has been using the same system for 30 years.
Kiev's off-the-ball running is as good as any I have ever seen. And they are temperamentally disciplined, as well as tactically disciplined. The two go together. They never get stretched, so they don't have to dive in and make silly tackles.
Of all the teams in the Champions League, Kiev concede the fewest free-kicks. They often defend deep, and rarely foul except in the last third to prevent a shot or killer pass. They are chess players, always three moves ahead. They make an interception and slice through you like cheesewire with two passes. Their defenders are very cute at pushing up to narrow angles and pinch the ball, or to catch a striker offside.
Kiev also work very hard. But because their shape is so good, you don't notice how how much running they do. And Shevchenko is a fantastic striker with all the qualities needed to be a superstar in Serie A: he is bold, fast, creative, direct and greedy. He took on huge responsibility at Wembley and completely outshone Bergkamp. But there is needle between him and Rebrov, who says Shevchenko doesn't pass.
Clearly, Kiev were superior in the first game.They had more skill, more possession, more shots, more corners and fewer fouls. They outnumbered Arsenal in every part of the field. It was always four against three, three against two, two against one.
They smothered Overmars once - and they can do it again. I hope I'm wrong, but I don't think Anelka will get a kick. He is still too raw for the Champions League. He runs offside, doesn't complete enough passes in the last third, doesn't get enough shots on target. Anelka will miss Bergkamp's passes.He has improved, but not enough.
However, miracles do happen in football. While Kiev have more talent, Arsenal have more desire. They want it more. They come from a more competitive league. Adams, Keown, Winterburn and the boys would really, really love to win the European Cup before Manchester United.
Bergkamp has never played in the European Cup Final. Overmars has. He had a night of great joy in 1995 when Ajax beat Milan 1-0 in Vienna. These days, of course, the pursuit of the European Cup is an excercise in competition between millionaires.
In 1997 Dortmund's millionaires were hungrier than those of Juventus and Manchester United, so they beat Juve 3-1 in the final. A year later Real Madrid, with hunger fuelled by 27 years of not winning it, were hungrier than Juventus in Amsterdam and won 1-0.
When Milan destroyed Barcelona in 1994, Desailles, Savicevic and co were ravenous, ready to eat them alive. After Maldini made that sensational early block to stop a Romario shot, it was all over. If that shot had gone in it would have been a different game. After that Milan annihilated Barca 4-0.
On Wednesday night Arsenal's best bet is to play for corners. Get Petit to hit some good inswingers. When Juventus won 4-1 in Kiev, two of the goals were inswinging corners from Zidane which Inzaghi headed in.