2018–19 Ukrainian Premier League
28th season of top-tier football league in Vyshcha Liha
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The 2018–19 Ukrainian Premier League season was the 28th top-level football club competitions since the fall of the Soviet Union and the eleventh since the establishment of the Ukrainian Premier League.
(winter break 9 December 2018 – 16 February 2019)
12th title
Chornomorets Odesea
Official logo[1] | |
| Season | 2018–19 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 21 July 2018 – 30 May 2019 (winter break 9 December 2018 – 16 February 2019) |
| Champions | Shakhtar Donetsk 12th title |
| Relegated | Arsenal–Kyiv Chornomorets Odesea |
| Champions League | Shakhtar Donetsk Dynamo Kyiv |
| Europa League | FC Oleksandriya FC Mariupol Zorya Luhansk |
| Matches | 192 |
| Goals | 474 (2.47 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | 19 – Júnior Moraes (Shakhtar) |
| Biggest home win | 5:0 – (Dynamo-Zorya, Shakhtar-Karpaty, Shakhtar-Lviv) |
| Biggest away win | 0:5 – (Arsenal-Zorya, Chornomorets-Karpaty) 1:6 – (Karpaty-Shakhtar) |
| Highest scoring | 2:5 – (Olimpik-Shakhtar) 1:6 – (Karpaty-Shakhtar) |
| Longest winning run | 8 – (Dynamo) |
| Longest unbeaten run | 29 – (Shakhtar) |
| Longest winless run | 12 – (Olimpik) |
| Longest losing run | 9 – (Chornomorets) |
| Highest attendance | 46,475 – Dynamo–Shakhtar (Round 3) |
| Lowest attendance | 0[2] – Dynamo–Vorskla (Round 1) |
| Total attendance | 797,940 |
| Average attendance | 4156 |
← 2017–18 2019–20 →
All statistics correct as of 15 May 2019. | |
The tournament started on 21 July 2018 and ended on 25 May 2019.[3] The league took its winter intermission after Round 18 on 8 December 2018 and resumed its competition of the Championship with Round 19 on 16 February 2019. The first stage ended with Round 22 games on 17 March 2019. The draw for the second stage was announced for 5 March 2019.[4]
The 11-time winner Shakhtar Donetsk were the two-time defending champions.
Teams
Promoted teams
- Arsenal Kyiv – the champion of the 2017–18 Ukrainian First League (returning as a phoenix club of previous Arsenal Kyiv after five seasons absence)
- Desna Chernihiv – 3rd place of the 2017–18 Ukrainian First League, play-off winners (debut)
Shuffled teams
- FC Lviv – a team swap after merging with NK Veres Rivne (returning as a phoenix club of previous FC Lviv after nine seasons absence)
On completion of the 2017–18 Ukrainian Premier League season, Veres Rivne, who had moved their operations to Lviv during the season announced the merging[5] with FC Lviv who competed in the 2017–18 Ukrainian Second League and retain their name.[6][7] This is the first time of such "swap" that has occurred with a team from the Ukrainian Premier League. Its certification the club passed on 5 June 2018.[8] Along with that the FFU certification committee is consulting with the UEFA in regards of the "clubs swap".[9] On 6 June 2018, it was announced that it is too early speculate composition of the league for the next season as the UEFA will make its final decision by allowing or not participation of FC Lviv. It is possible that some of already relegated clubs might be given a second chance if UEFA will insist on impossibility of the Lviv-Veres team swap.[10][11] On 12 June 2018, Ukrainian Premier League updated its website removing any mentioning of NK Veres Rivne ever competing in the league and its record being awarded to FC Lviv.[12] Few days later the league recovered the Veres' record. More to the story, in interview to "Tribuna" a head of the FFU Attestation Committee Viktor Bezsmernyi explained that it was Veres that received certificate for the 2018–19 Ukrainian Premier League and then the club changed its name.[13] At same time the old-new president of Veres Khakhlyov demonstrated the club's certificate for the 2018–19 Ukrainian Second League.[14]
Withdrawn teams
- On 21 June 2018, during the club's conference of FC Poltava, the club's leadership announced that it dissolved the club.[15][16][17]
On 22 June 2018, the UPL published an official announcement about situation with FC Poltava, and while shocked with the club's decision the league is confirming that the club is withdrawing and that the league will be seeking its replacement.[18][19] Following withdrawal of FC Poltava, a crisis has seemed to ripen in the league as there is no other team can replace Poltava due to financing or infrastructure issues.[20] Based on the voting conducted among the UPL members, on 26 June 2018, the league picked FC Chornomorets Odesa for the Poltava's replacement and submitted its selection for approval by the FFU Executive Committee.[21][22][23] On 3 July 2018, Chornomorets was officially approved by FFU as 2018–19 Ukrainian Premier League participant.[24]
Location map
The following displays the location of teams.
Teams in italics are from the conflict zone of the War in Donbas and are playing their home games in different cities.
Stadiums
Three teams play their matches outside of home towns. The minimum threshold for the stadium's capacity in the UPL is 5,000 (Article 10, paragraph 7.2).[25]
The following stadiums are regarded as home grounds:
| Rank | Stadium | Place | Club | Capacity | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | NSC Olimpiyskiy | Kyiv | Dynamo Kyiv | 70,050 | |
| 2 | OSC Metalist | Kharkiv | Shakhtar Donetsk | 40,003 | used as home ground during the season. |
| 3 | Arena Lviv | Lviv | FC Lviv | 34,915 | |
| 4 | Chornomorets Stadium | Odesa | Chornomorets Odesa | 34,164 | |
| 5 | Ukraina Stadium | Lviv | Karpaty Lviv FC Lviv |
28,051 | used in Round 5,[26] home ground since Round 19 |
| 6 | Vorskla Stadium | Poltava | Vorskla Poltava | 24,795 | |
| 7 | Lobanovsky Dynamo Stadium | Kyiv | Olimpik Donetsk Arsenal Kyiv[a] |
16,873 | used as home ground during the season. |
| 8 | Volodymyr Boiko Stadium | Mariupol | FC Mariupol | 12,680 | |
| 9 | Chernihiv Stadium | Chernihiv | Desna Chernihiv | 12,060 | |
| 10 | Slavutych-Arena | Zaporizhzhia | Zorya Luhansk | 12,000 | used as home ground during the season. |
| 11 | CSC Nika Stadium | Oleksandriya | FC Oleksandriya | 7,000 |
Notes:
- Originally registering Bannikov Stadium as its main stadium for the season, the club's president Piric informed that at least for next year Arsenal will play at Dynamo Stadium.[27] Bannikov Stadium does not meet all the requirements of UPL.[28]
Personnel and sponsorship
Notes:
Managerial changes
| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Table | Incoming manager | Date of appointment | Table |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FC Lviv |  Andriy Khanas (interim) |
Club reorganized (in place of NK Veres Rivne) | unannounced | Pre-season | Andriy Demchenko (interim) |
8 June 2018[35][36] | Pre-season |
| Chornomorets Odesa | Kostyantyn Frolov |
Dismissed (w/o details) | 13 June 2018[37] |  Angel Chervenkov |
13 June 2018[37] | ||
| Arsenal Kyiv | Serhiy Litovchenko |
"Laid off"[a] | 22 June 2018[40] |  Fabrizio Ravanelli |
22 June 2018[40] | ||
| FC Lviv | Andriy Demchenko |
End of interim | 29 June 2018[41] |  Gilmar |
3 July 2018[42] | ||
| Gilmar |
Resigned[b] | 14 August 2018[44] | 7th | Yuriy Bakalov |
16 August 2018[45][46][47] | 7th | |
| Karpaty Lviv | Oleh Boychyshyn |
Sacked | 16 August 2018[48] | 8th |  José Morais |
16 August 2018[49] | 8th |
| Arsenal Kyiv | Fabrizio Ravanelli |
Resigned | 22 September 2018[50] | 12th | Vladyslav Humenyuk |
22 September 2018[51] | 12th |
| Vladyslav Humenyuk |
End of interim | 1 October 2018[52] | Vyacheslav Hroznyi[c] |
1 October 2018[52] | |||
| Olimpik Donetsk | Roman Sanzhar |
Mutual consent | 3 October 2018[56] | 7th | Vyacheslav Shevchuk |
3 October 2018[57] | 7th |
| Karpaty Lviv | José Morais |
Contract terminated[d] | 28 November 2018[59] | 10th | Oleh Boychyshyn (interim) |
28 November 2018[59] | 10th |
| Arsenal Kyiv | Vyacheslav Hroznyi |
Mutual agreement | 9 January 2019[60] | 12th | Ihor Leonov |
16 January 2019[61] | 12th |
| Karpaty Lviv | Oleh Boychyshyn |
End of interim | 13 January 2019[62] | 10th |  Fabri |
13 January 2019[62] | 10th |
| Vorskla Poltava | Vasyl Sachko |
Contract terminated | 27 March 2019[63] | 7th | Vitaliy Kosovskyi (interim) |
28 March 2019[64] | 7th |
| FC Lviv | Yuriy Bakalov |
Mutual consent | 8 April 2019[65][66] | 6th | Taras Hrebenyuk (interim) |
8 April 2019 | 6th |
| Taras Hrebenyuk |
End of interim | 16 April 2019 | 5th | Bohdan Blavatskyi |
16 April 2019[67] | 5th | |
| Olimpik Donetsk | Vyacheslav Shevchuk |
Mutual consent | 17 April 2019[68] | 10th | Ihor Klymovskyi (interim) |
17 April 2019[69] | 10th |
| Karpaty Lviv | Fabri |
Resigned (heath concerns) | 27 May 2019[70] | 10th | Oleksandr Chyzhevskyi (interim) |
27 May 2019[70] | 10th |
| For changes that took place after 30 May 2019 (last round game day), see 2019–20 Ukrainian Premier League | |||||||
Notes:
- On 20 August 2018 in interview to internet newsmedia Footboom Serhiy Litovchenko explained his dismissal from the club pointing out that he still was under contract and will sue the club.[38] On 1 November 2018 the FFU chamber on settling of disagreements fined FC Arsenal-Kyiv and laid a transfer ban onto the club following the case Litovchenko vs FC Arsenal-Kyiv.[39]
- On 13 August 2018 the Football Federation of Ukraine informed the club that Gilmar does not have the UEFA PRO license and therefore cannot be the club's head coach (manager).[43]
- On 30 November 2018 in interview to Sport Express Hroznyi stated that he does not have a contract with Arsenal, but rather a gentlemen's agreement and expires on 30 November 2018.[53] Soon thereafter FC Arsenal Kyiv made a press-release announcing that Hroznyi's contract is valid until 30 June 2019.[54] Next day Hroznyi explained that the contract actually does exist, but there is the gentlemen's agreement as well and in case of poor financing he will leave club.[55]
- Same day he was appointed as a manager of Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors FC, South Korea (twitter at 19:27 of the Seoul's time).[58]
First stage
First stage table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation[a] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shakhtar Donetsk | 22 | 18 | 3 | 1 | 52 | 9 | +43 | 57 | Qualification for the Championship round |
| 2 | Dynamo Kyiv | 22 | 16 | 2 | 4 | 40 | 11 | +29 | 50 | |
| 3 | FC Oleksandriya | 22 | 12 | 5 | 5 | 31 | 19 | +12 | 41 | |
| 4 | Zorya Luhansk | 22 | 8 | 8 | 6 | 28 | 20 | +8 | 32 | |
| 5 | FC Lviv | 22 | 7 | 9 | 6 | 19 | 20 | −1 | 30 | |
| 6 | FC Mariupol | 22 | 8 | 6 | 8 | 24 | 33 | −9 | 30 | |
| 7 | Vorskla Poltava | 22 | 9 | 2 | 11 | 18 | 28 | −10 | 29 | Qualification for the Relegation round |
| 8 | Desna Chernihiv | 22 | 8 | 4 | 10 | 23 | 24 | −1 | 28 | |
| 9 | Karpaty Lviv | 22 | 5 | 6 | 11 | 26 | 37 | −11 | 21 | |
| 10 | Olimpik Donetsk | 22 | 4 | 8 | 10 | 25 | 33 | −8 | 20 | |
| 11 | Chornomorets Odesa | 22 | 4 | 4 | 14 | 12 | 34 | −22 | 16 | |
| 12 | Arsenal Kyiv | 22 | 3 | 3 | 16 | 12 | 42 | −30 | 12 |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Head-to-head points; 3) Head-to-head goal difference; 4) Head-to-head higher number of goals scored; 5) Goal difference; 6) Higher number of goals scored; 7) Draw or "golden match" if tied for title (Article 22, paragraph 3).[71]
Notes:
- Teams play each other twice (22 matches), before the league split into two groups (the top six and the bottom six) for the last 10 matches.
First stage results
Teams play each other twice on a home and away basis, before the league split into two groups – the top six and the bottom six.
Notes:
First stage positions by round
The following table represents the teams position after each round in the competition played chronologically.
Championship round
Championship round table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shakhtar Donetsk (C) | 32 | 26 | 5 | 1 | 73 | 11 | +62 | 83 | Qualification for the Champions League group stage |
| 2 | Dynamo Kyiv | 32 | 22 | 6 | 4 | 54 | 18 | +36 | 72 | Qualification for the Champions League third qualifying round |
| 3 | FC Oleksandriya | 32 | 14 | 7 | 11 | 39 | 34 | +5 | 49 | Qualification for the Europa League group stage[a] |
| 4 | FC Mariupol | 32 | 12 | 7 | 13 | 36 | 47 | −11 | 43[b] | Qualification for the Europa League third qualifying round[a] |
| 5 | Zorya Luhansk | 32 | 11 | 10 | 11 | 39 | 34 | +5 | 43[b] | Qualification for the Europa League second qualifying round[a] |
| 6 | FC Lviv | 32 | 8 | 10 | 14 | 25 | 40 | −15 | 34 |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Head-to-head points; 3) Head-to-head goal difference; 4) Head-to-head higher number of goals scored; 5) Goal difference; 6) Higher number of goals scored; 7) Draw or "golden match" if tied for title (Article 22, paragraph 3).[71]
(C) Champions
Notes:
- Since the winners of the 2018–19 Ukrainian Cup, Shakhtar Donetsk, qualified for European competition based on league position, the spot awarded to the cup winners (Europa League group stage) was passed to the third-placed team, the spot awarded to the third-placed team (Europa League third qualifying round) was passed to the fourth-placed team, and the spot awarded to the fourth-placed team (Europa League second qualifying round) was passed to the fifth-placed team.
- Head to Head: Mariupol – Zorya +3=0-1, advantage Mariupol.
Championship round results
Championship round positions by round
Relegation round
Relegation round table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | Vorskla Poltava | 32 | 12 | 6 | 14 | 31 | 43 | −12 | 42 | |
| 8 | Desna Chernihiv | 32 | 12 | 5 | 15 | 35 | 41 | −6 | 41 | |
| 9 | Olimpik Donetsk | 32 | 7 | 13 | 12 | 41 | 48 | −7 | 34 | |
| 10 | Karpaty Lviv (O) | 32 | 8 | 9 | 15 | 44 | 53 | −9 | 33 | Qualification for the Relegation play-offs |
| 11 | Chornomorets Odesa (R) | 32 | 8 | 7 | 17 | 31 | 49 | −18 | 31 | |
| 12 | Arsenal Kyiv (R, X) | 32 | 7 | 5 | 20 | 26 | 56 | −30 | 26 | Relegated and later withdrawn |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Head-to-head points; 3) Head-to-head goal difference; 4) Head-to-head higher number of goals scored; 5) Goal difference; 6) Higher number of goals scored; 7) Draw or "golden match" if tied for title (Article 22, paragraph 3).[71]
(O) Play-off winners; (R) Relegated; (X) Withdrew
Relegation round results
Relegation round positions by round
Relegation play-offs
Teams that placed 10th and 11th in the 2018–19 Ukrainian Premier League play two-leg play-off with the second and third teams of the 2018–19 Ukrainian First League. The draw for play-offs took place on 24 May 2019[74] and the games will be played on 4 and 8 June 2019.[75]
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chornomorets Odesa | 0 – 2 | Kolos Kovalivka | 0 – 0 | 0 – 2 |
| Karpaty Lviv | 3 – 1 | Volyn Lutsk | 0 – 0 | 3 – 1 |
First leg
Second leg
| Kolos Kovalivka | 2 – 0 | Chornomorets Odesa |
|---|---|---|
Havrysh  57', 63' (pen.) |
Report |
Kolos Kovalivka won 2–0 on aggregate and were promoted to the 2019–20 Ukrainian Premier League. Chornomorets Odesa were relegated to the 2019–20 Ukrainian First League
| Volyn Lutsk | 0 – 3 | Karpaty Lviv |
|---|---|---|
| Kozhanov 42' |
Report | Klyots 37' Ponde 82' (pen.) Miroshnichenko 90+5' |
Karpaty Lviv won 3–0 on aggregate and retained their spot in the 2019–20 Ukrainian Premier League. Volyn Lutsk remained in the 2019–20 Ukrainian First League
Due to fan violence at the game and attack on referee, the original score 1–3 was scratched and replaced with technical score 0–3 loss to Volyn and win for Karpaty. Additionally, the Lutsk department of police started criminal proceedings on the fact of intentional damage to property during the game by the Karpaty fans.[76]
Season statistics
Top goalscorers
Notes: |
 Top assistants
|
Hat-tricks
| Player | For | Against | Result | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Júnior Moraes |
Shakhtar Donetsk | Olimpik Donetsk | 5–2 |
24 August 2018[81] |
| Viktor Tsyhankov |
Dynamo Kyiv | Karpaty Lviv | 4–0 |
8 December 2018[82] |
| Maryan Shved |
Karpaty Lviv | Vorskla Poltava | 4–0 |
24 February 2019[83] |
| Dentinho |
Shakhtar Donetsk | Mariupol | 4–0 |
26 May 2019[84] |
(number) Player scored (number) goals if more than 3
Notes:
- On 19 March 2019, Brazilian footballer Moraes received Ukrainian citizenship and was invited to the Ukraine national football team.[78][79]
Awards
Monthly awards
| Month | Player of the Month | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Club | Ref. | |
| July 2018 |  Benjamin Verbič |
Dynamo Kyiv | [86] |
| August 2018 | Benjamin Verbič |
Dynamo Kyiv | [87] |
| September 2018 | Maryan Shved |
Karpaty Lviv | [88] |
| October 2018 | Ismaily |
Shakhtar Donetsk | [89] |
| November 2018 | Maryan Shved |
Karpaty Lviv | [90] |
| December 2018 | Viktor Tsyhankov |
Dynamo Kyiv | [91] |
| March 2019 | Maryan Shved |
Karpaty Lviv | [92] |
| April 2019 | Viktor Tsyhankov |
Dynamo Kyiv | [93] |
| May 2019 | Serhiy Myakushko |
Karpaty Lviv | [94] |
Round awards
Source:[95]
The 2018 Coach of the Year award
The best coaches were identified by the All-Ukrainian Football Coaches Association.[160]
| Place | Coach | Team | Mark |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Volodymyr Sharan | FC Oleksandriya | 4.38 |
| 2 | Paulo Fonseca | Shakhtar Donetsk | 4.24 |
| 3 |  Alyaksandr Khatskevich | Dynamo Kyiv | 4.16 |
| 4 | Yuriy Bakalov | FC Lviv | 4.06 |
| 5 | Yuriy Vernydub | Zorya Luhansk | 4.00 |
Season awards
The laureates of the 2018–19 UPL season were:[161][162]
- Best player:
Viktor Tsyhankov (Dynamo Kyiv) - Best coach:
Paulo Fonseca (Shakhtar Donetsk) - Best goalkeeper: Andriy Pyatov (Shakhtar Donetsk)
- Best arbiter: Anatoliy Abdula (Kharkiv)
- Best young player: Vitalii Mykolenko (Dynamo Kyiv)
- Best goalscorer: Júnior Moraes (Shakhtar Donetsk)