Dynamo Kyiv vs Lazio
Football fans will have more reasons to be excited this week, as the Europa League opens its new edition on Thursday, debuting a new format that mirrors the Champions League.
One of the matches to be played on Matchday 1 involves last year’s runners-up in the Ukrainian Premier League, Dynamo Kyiv, taking on two-time Serie A winners Lazio at Volksparkstadion in Hamburg, Germany.
Just like when Hamburg hosted Shakhtar Donetsk’s matches last season, the Bundesliga club are continuing their support for Ukrainian teams due to Ukraine’s ongoing war with Russia.
But enough with the politics. Football is why we’re here, and Dynamo Kyiv—despite the outside noise—are doing well for themselves.
After failing to reach the Conference League’s group stage last season, they have made themselves proud this year, qualifying to the Europa League’s league phase after falling short against Red Bull Salzburg in the UCL qualifiers.
Both clubs have different starts to their league matches so far, but European competition is a different animal.
Which team, then, can take the victory under the floodlights in Germany?
Talking Points
Dynamo Kyiv are soaring
There were never any doubts that football would be severely affected by the war with Russia. But as damaging as it may be, the Blue and Whites in Kyiv are playing proper football and are fully focused on the task ahead—winning matches.
And so far, so good. They are unbeaten in the Ukrainian Premier League, and share the top spot with Oleksandriya at 16 points apiece.
Prior to a goalless draw against Rukh Lviv last week, the Blue and Whites were on a five-match winning run, scoring 11 goals and conceding three in the process.
But their streak was bound to end at some point, and they are now committed to delivering a good result against Lazio on Thursday.
“Both sides had chances today. It was a good game, but unfortunately we ceased our winning streak. Now we need to get ready for the next match,” midfielder Oleksandr Pikhalyonok said after their last match.
Lazio to look for veteran presence in Europe
Marco Baroni had to make do against Fiorentina without his top goalscorer, Taty Castellanos (three goals in four games), due to a slight knock the forward had in their win against Hellas Verona.
And his scoring acumen was sorely missed by the club after they fell in Florence a couple of days ago.
During the match, it was Boulaye Dia who replaced the Argentine attacker up front. But he was subbed off in the 68th minute in favour of former Barcelona and Chelsea talisman Pedro.
But with Dia picking up an injury in the aforementioned match—and Castellanos unlikely to be risked with huge minutes against Dynamo Kyiv—Baroni can find comfort in the fact that he’s got an experienced and tested player in Pedro to fill in the gaps.
And according to Europa League 2024 updates, Baroni may start Pedro come Thursday.
The 37-year-old has over 190 goals in 800 plus appearances in his storied career.
History
Lazio were also victorious in their Champions League match some 25 years ago, which was held at the Stadion Dynamo im. Valeriy Lobanovskyi.
Betting Tip
Regardless if the Ukrainian side have the better domestic record, Lazio—for my money—have more quality than their upcoming opponents, and Baroni does have more at his disposal to get the job done in Hamburg.
So far, the Italian club are yet to keep a clean sheet in Serie A, but I trust the backline led by Nuno Tavares, Mario Gila Fuentes and Manuel Lazzari to keep Dynamo Kyiv at bay.
Mattia Zaccagni and Gustav Isaksen will also be looking to add to their goal tallies so far, whilst Tijjani Noslin hopes to finally get on the board for Lazio.
And if Castellanos does play, then the likelihood of I Biancocelesti winning will no doubt rise.
As of writing, they are favoured by the SBOTOP Europa League 2024 odds at 2.04, whilst Dynamo Kyiv are priced at 3.23, and a tie goes for 3.11.
The home side will look for Oleksandr Pikhalyonok, Andriy Yarmolenko and Vitaliy Buyalskyi for scoring chances, with the trio already having two goals apiece in the league.
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Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.
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