Ivan Fedyk prepares his "Rukh" squad for an important home fixture against Kyiv's "Obolon" this Friday, following a brutal 5-1 defeat to champions "Dynamo" last weekend. The match, scheduled for August 15 at Ukraine Stadium in Lviv, will be the 70th home game for the Lviv club in the Ukrainian Premier League.
"After losing ten players and our previous head coach, we're still finding our rhythm in this campaign," a club representative might say about the current situation at "Rukh".
The Lviv side began their sixth UPL campaign with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over debutants SC "Poltava" but were overwhelmed by "Dynamo" in their second match, only managing a consolation goal from Baboucar Faal. Interestingly, that game featured Oleh Dzyurinets, who became the youngest player in league history.
Meanwhile, Sergiy Sukhanov's thunderous strike secured "Obolon" a 1-0 win against last season's silver medalists "Oleksandria" after their opening 0-0 draw with "Metalist 1925" in Zhytomyr. The Kyiv club has now extended their clean sheet streak to three consecutive matches – something they hadn't achieved since May 2024.
The bookmakers slightly favor the home side, offering odds of 2.40 for a "Rukh" victory versus 3.35 for an "Obolon" win. A draw stands at 3.10.
Worth noting that "Rukh's" defense has been struggling lately, conceding 8 goals across their last 4 league games. In stark contrast, "Obolon" hasn't conceded for an impressive 313 minutes of UPL action and is currently enjoying a three-match unbeaten run (2 wins, 1 draw).
Denis Ustimenko could score his 10th UPL goal if he finds the net for "Obolon" on Friday. Can the visitors maintain their defensive solidity, or will "Rukh" bounce back from their heavy defeat? We'll find out when referee Dmytro Panchyshyn blows the opening whistle at 18:00.
