Ivan Lytvynenko: "We want to be on top - and we prove it with the game"

The midfielder of "Metalist 1925" Ivan Lytvynenko scored an important goal against "Dynamo" and secured a draw for the team in the central match of the 8th round. After the game, he shared his impressions of the match and the team's overall progress:

– Congratulations on this goal. If I'm not mistaken, this is your second goal in this championship. Does it hold any special significance for you, or is it just one of the two goals you managed to score — does it make a difference?

– Every goal is special to me. I haven't scored that often before. Now there's a streak: scored in the championship, then in the Cup, and today against "Dynamo." It's a football giant, and it's my first game against "Dynamo." Scoring a goal is important, but even more important is that it helped us secure an important point. We continue to race for the top of the table. We want to be up there — and we prove it with our game, giving our all to be there. I believe we played no worse than "Dynamo" today. We had our moments, they had theirs. I scored, could have scored again at the end, but it ended 1:1. I think it's a fair result.

– You mentioned a streak. Your victory in Olexandriya marked its beginning. Could you have imagined back then that you would be on equal terms with the leaders?

– Yes, we want to show our ambitions. We're not talking about winning the championship or anything like that, but we want to be there. From game to game, we move and show "Shakhtar," "Dynamo" that yes, they are giants, they are champions. But we also want to be up there. Not just in words, but in our game. The championship is long, but right now we are where we are, moving from match to match. Of course, the ultimate goal is to be up there. And where exactly — the end of the championship will show. We're working to be up there, giving our all. I believe we deserve to be where we are. The way the team works, the effort put in every game — it's all logical. We will continue to delight our fans and the city of Kharkiv, which also wants us to be up there.