Sprint and marathon

A third of the way is behind us. If, of course, you go by the calendar. In reality only nine clubs have covered that part of the distance. Five more have a game in hand, and Obolon and Kryvbas 45 and 135 minutes respectively, including a second half they share.

Even before the season started one could assume, almost without error, that exactly half the field would not so much as look up – a desperate fight for survival awaits them. And so it is. Just above the waterline the situation is unstable for now, but without serious upheavals. It looks as if Zorya, LNZ and Karpaty are in for a private little contest for an honourable fifth place. Though it cannot be ruled out that someone from mid-table will stir things up among the top four.

Polissia are travelling with a personal best for the distance. Zhytomyr’s 25 points are the second-best tally at this stage in the last three years (no need, I think, to dig deeper). Only Dynamo and Oleksandriia had more, in October 2024 (26 each). The Miners and the Wolves gathered mere crumbs back then – 20 points apiece. As a result, they never caught the runaways.

The front of the field was at its most crowded a year ago: Shakhtar 21 points, Dynamo and LNZ 20 each, Polissia and Kryvbas 19 each. The finish in May showed how different the disciplines of sprint and marathon are: Shakhtar 72, LNZ 60, Polissia 59, Dynamo 57, while Kryvbas stalled completely on 48.

Today the top four includes the enigmatic Kharkiv (are they serious, or does it just happen that way?). Mladen Bartulović’s team have already set a mass of club records that their digital predecessor, Metalist 1925, never even dreamt of.

The “new Kharkiv”, who finished last season in fifth, have tried the bronze seat for the first time. Given that some of them even wore silver in their Oleksandriia days (Yermakov, Martyniuk, Shabanov, Kaliuzhnyi), the fondness of Bartulović’s men for precious metals is obvious. We have already appreciated the crimson-and-golds’ current pace – in particular their stunning run of six wins.

Onwards and upwards? If so, the established domestic hierarchy could be demolished completely – in the sense that two teams at once would finish above Shakhtar and Dynamo. And that would mean a fourth champion in Ukraine’s history. Are we morally ready for such a tectonic shift?

On the one hand, it is too early to talk about this in October. On the other, it is never too late. As a rule, the customary “there are still plenty of matches to go” runs out much sooner than expected.

Four goalless draws and just 12 goals in round 10 make for dull reading. The draw in the Donbas derby undoubtedly added intrigue to the title race. The experts’ forecasts of an easy Shakhtar title are not being borne out so far. Fighting on two fronts is hard for any team, and the Miners are still a long way from perfection. We can see how they suffer.

But the most important news from round 10 is that Ivan Petriak has recovered from Vladyslav Dubinchak’s brutal aerial challenge.