Andriy Yarmolenko
The European championship that Ukraine is co-hosting with Poland is a great chance for gifted Dynamo Kiev midfielder Andriy Yarmolenko to shine and show why he is Ukraine's most outstanding young player.
- Agence France-Presse
- Updated: May 29, 2012 06:26 PM IST
Full name: Andriy Mykolaiovich Yarmolenko
Date of birth: 23 October 1989 (age 22)
Place of birth: Saint Petersburg, Soviet Union
Playing position: Forward / Left winger
Current club: Dynamo Kyiv (Ukraine)
The European championship that Ukraine is co-hosting with Poland is a great chance for gifted Dynamo Kiev midfielder Andriy Yarmolenko to shine and show why he is Ukraine's most outstanding young player.
The Saint Petersburg-born midfielder had to endure a tough ride to break into Ukraine's top club side, after his first attempt at the age of 13 ended in disaster when he was expelled from the Dynamo academy for lacking promise.
But his natural talent and hard work in the lower leagues finally paid dividends and he was rewarded with a place in Dynamo's first-choice line-up.
Yarmolenko made his debut for Dynamo Kiev in 2007 under club manager Valery Gazzaev.
They were both initially sharply criticised, as Yarmolenko missed scoring chances in every match for Dynamo.
But Gazzaev kept faith in his young prodigy and Yarmolenko progressed step-by-step. Their persistence finally paid off when he became an integral member of Dynamo starting line-up.
Yarmolenko has already scored 39 goals in 123 matches for Ukraine's 13-time champions, attracting keen interest from several major European clubs.
The Russian Premiership's big-spending side Anzhi Makhachkala, who recently shook the football world with a series of multi-million dollar transfers including Cameroon sharpshooter Samuel Eto'o, also expressed a desire to lure Yarmolenko from Dynamo.
But the 22-year-old links his destiny in the near future to his current club, saying the side is the one he dreamed of playing for since he was a child.
"I don't really care about the rumours concerning the interest of the great Western clubs," Yarmolenko said. "My work is to play football. And I want to play at Dynamo. It's my childhood dream and I'm happy to be here."
He has already won 18 caps since his debut in 2009, when he scored in his first appearance in the 2010 World Cup qualifier against Andorra.
Though Ukraine's national manager Oleg Blokhin has repeatedly said that none of his players is assured of a place in his finals team, there is little doubt over Yarmolenko's presence in the starting line-up.
"There's plenty of personnel problems in Ukraine's team," said former Russian international striker Oleg Salenko, who netted six goals at the 1994 World Cup in the United States.
"However, from my point of view, there are five players who are undoubted starters in case they manage to avoid injuries."
Salenko named goalkeeper Olexander Shovkovskiy, full back Yaroslav Rakitskiy, midfielder Anatoliy Tymoshchuk and wingers Oleg Gusev and Yarmolenko as automatic first choices.