FC Dynamo Kyiv MATCH PRESS KIT Stadio Olimpico, Rome Wednesday 19 September 2007 - 20.45CET Group F - Matchday 1
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AS Roma - FC Dynamo Kyiv MATCH PRESS KIT Stadio Olimpico, Rome Wednesday 19 September 2007 - 20.45CET Group F - Matchday 1 Contents 1 - Match background 7 - UEFA information 2 - Match facts 8 - Match-by-match lineups 3 - Squad list 9 - Competition facts 4 - Head coach 10 - Team facts 5 - Match officials 11 - Competition information 6 - Domestic information 12 - Legend Match background AS Roma will be aiming to dispel the unhappy memory of FC Dynamo Kyiv's last visit to the Italian capital when the sides meet at the Stadio Olimpico in their opening Group F encounter. When they faced the Ukrainian champions on Matchday 1 of the 2004/05 campaign, the game lasted only 45 minutes before it was abandoned. • Dynamo, who had been leading through a Goran Gavrančić free-kick when a missile was thrown at referee Anders Frisk, were subsequently awarded a 3-0 win. Roma, who had lost Philippe Mexes to a red card moments before half-time, never recovered and ended up bottom of their group with just one point. In what is expected to prove a tightly contested group, neither side will want to open with a similarly heavy loss this time round. • Second in Serie A last term, Roma enjoyed their best European campaign for 23 years in 2006/07 by reaching the quarter-finals. If their hopes crumbled in humiliating fashion with a 7-1 loss at Manchester United FC - their heaviest in continental competition - they had impressed up to that point, notably in their 2-0 aggregate win over Olympique Lyonnais in the first knockout round. • Anatoliy Demyanenko's Dynamo, by contrast, endured their worst UEFA Champions League group stage performance last term. They made the worst possible start with a 4-1 home defeat by Steaua Bucuresti and finished bottom of their group with just two points. For Dynamo it was a sixth failed attempt to progress from the group stage since they reached the last 16 in 1999/00. • They secured their place in the group stage this season by defeating FK Sarajevo of Bosnia-Herzegovina 4-0 on aggregate in the third qualifying round. Maksim Shatskikh earned them a 1-0 away win in the first leg before they prevailed 3-0 in the return through Ismaël Bangoura's early strike, Semjon Milošević's own goal and Serhiy Rebrov's late penalty. • Roma have lost three of four previous matches against Ukrainian opposition. After that 3-0 home defeat by Dynamo in September 2004, they also lost the return in Kiev 2-0. Last season, meanwhile, the Giallorossi suffered a 1-0 reverse at FC Shakhtar Donetsk. • A more positive omen for the Italian side was the 4-0 victory over Shakhtar with which they opened their group stage programme last September. Taddei, Francesco Totti, Daniele De Rossi and David Pizarro all struck during a 23-minute goal spree in the final quarter. Last updated 17.09.2007 20:12:50CET Match background 1 AS Roma - FC Dynamo Kyiv Wednesday 19 September 2007 - 20.45CET MATCH PRESS KIT Stadio Olimpico, Rome • Dynamo have recorded only one win on Italian soil – the default win over Roma in 2004 – with their other visits yielding two draws and four defeats. • Roma pair Totti and Simone Perrotta lined up against Dynamo's Olexandr Shovkovskiy, Andriy Nesmachniy, Oleh Gusev, Vladyslav Vaschuk and Artem Milevskiy in the 2006 FIFA World Cup quarter-final between Italy and Ukraine. Italy won the match 3-0. • Perrotta, along with Christian Panucci and substitute Alberto Aquilani, also played against Shovkovskiy, Gusev and Milevskiy in Italy's 2-1 win in Kiev last Wednesday in UEFA EURO 2008™ qualifying. Rotan was an unused subsitute. Match facts Roma • Francesco Totti is one appearance shy of 60 in UEFA club competition while Ludovic Giuly has featured in 69 European matches. • Simone Perrotta celebrated his 30th birthday on 17 September, two days before the Dynamo game, while Totti is 31 on 27 September. • Roma continued their 100 per cent start to the season after winning 2-0 at Reggina Calcio on Sunday. New signing Juan opened the scoring five minutes into the second half with a clever back-heel from Totti's free-kick. Reggina then had Carlos Valdez sent off before Totti added a second goal (83). • Roma coach Luciano Spalletti said: "We fully deserved the victory even if it was not easy as it looked. We managed to play in the right way in the key moments of the game. Our main problem is that sometimes we lack a bit of solidity. We are not thinking of long-term goals at this stage, only of working hard day after day in training." • Christian Panucci and Mirko Vučinić were both omitted from the squad for the trip to Reggina after returning from international duty with minor thigh and leg injuries respectively. • Juan started alongside Philippe Mexes in the centre of the defence, although the Brazilian was forced off with a muscle problem midway through the second half. Doni also had to leave the pitch after receiving a knock meaning Gianluca Curci was between the posts for the second half. • Roma are the only team in Serie A to have maximum points following Juventus' defeat against Udinese Calcio. • They are also the only side in the league still to concede a goal after three games. • After finishing second in Serie A, reaching the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals and winning the Coppa Italia, Roma have worked hard in the transfer market to reinforce Spalletti's squad. • The first important deals of the summer were the new contracts offered to Mexes and Curci, who are now committed until 2011. • Then the Giallorossi took sole possession of David Pizarro after paying FC Internazionale Milano €5.75m for the remainder of his playing licence. • Roma also took up an option to sign Vučinić on a permanent basis from US Lecce for €7.5m. The 23-year-old joined on loan last summer and has now signed a four-year contract. Last updated 17.09.2007 20:12:50CET Match facts 2 AS Roma - FC Dynamo Kyiv Wednesday 19 September 2007 - 20.45CET MATCH PRESS KIT Stadio Olimpico, Rome • The first new face was Juan, who joined on a four-year deal from Bayer 04 Leverkusen for €6.3m. Matteo Brighi returned from a loan spell at AC Chievo Verona and Adrian Florin Pit signed from AC Bellinzona. • The Giallorossi also brought in Mauro Esposito from Cagliari Calcio (€2m for half of the 28-year-old's playing licence) and Ahmed Apimah Barusso from Serie B side Rimini Calcio. The Giallorossi reportedly paid €1.7m to acquire half of Barusso's playing licence, with the 22-year-old agreeing a contract until 2012. • Giuly came from FC Barcelona for €3.2m on a three-year contract, Cicinho left Real Madrid CF for a fee which could rise to €11m on a five-year contract and Antunes arrived on a year-long loan from FC Paços de Ferreira with an option for a permanent €1.2m move. • Marco Andreolli also joined from FC Internazionale Milano as a part-exchange with Cristian Chivu moving in the opposite direction for €13m. • Chivu's departure was the most significant for the Giallorossi, who also decided not to use their options to sign last season's loanees Francesco Tavano (Valencia CF) and Christian Wilhelmsson (FC Nantes Atlantique) on permanent contracts. • Roma sold Ricardo Faty to Leverkusen and Shabani Nonda to Galatasaray SK, while Vincenzo Montella joined UC Sampdoria on loan. • Totti won the 2006/07 ESM Golden Shoe with 26 Serie A goals. On 20 July the Roma captain announced his decision to retire from international football "for physical reasons, not technical ones", having previously taken an extended break from the Italy team after the 2006 FIFA World Cup finals. Totti made his international debut in a friendly against Switzerland in 1998 and finished with nine goals in 58 appearances. • Roma had a very difficult pre-season with defeats against BV Borussia Dortmund (4-0), Juventus (5-2), and West Ham United FC (2-1), a 2-2 draw against Leverkusen and a 1-0 win against Serie B side Frosinone Calcio. • However Spalletti's team were fully ready for the first competitive game of the season, defeating champions Inter 1-0 at the Giuseppe Meazza Stadium to lift the Italian Super Cup on 19 August. Daniele De Rossi scored a penalty 12 minutes from time. • Roma started the new Serie A season in similar fashion wining 2-0 at US Città di Palermo in their opening game with first-half goals by Mexes and Alberto Aquilani. The latter scored again as Roma defeated AC Siena 3-0 a week later. Totti and Giuly were also on target, the latter's goal his first for the club. • There was contrasting news in the summer for two former members of the Roma side which won the Scudetto in 2001. Vincent Candela announced his retirement while Aldair returned to action aged 43 to play in the UEFA Champions League first qualifying round for San Marino side S.S. Murata. • Curci, Aquilani and Andreolli represented Italy at the UEFA Under-21 European Championship in the Netherlands as the Azzurrini failed to progress from the group stage but qualified for the 2008 Olympic Games by beating Portugal on penalties in a play-off. Curci suffered a groin injury in the opening game and missed the rest of the tournament. • Curci and Aquilani were promoted to the senior squad for the friendly against Hungary in August and the September UEFA EURO 2008™ Group B qualifying games against France and Ukraine.