Dobvyk: Compared to Haaland, Girona star is set to break Shevchenko record
Girona are more than a team on a hot streak. After wins against Barcelona, Atlético Madrid and a 5-1 victory over Sevilla, the Catalan club owned by the City Football Group is now Real Madrid’s biggest title challenger. One of the main reasons for the recent success of the club coached by head coach Míchel is new signing Artem Dovbyk, who, just one year after leaving SK Dnipro-1, is on the way to breaking a record set by Andriy Shevchenko.
The Ukrainian legend scored 24 goals for AC Milan in the Serie A three times. A record for a Ukrainian forward in any of Europe’s top five leagues. But after scoring a hattrick in just six minutes against Sevilla—the fourth fastest in LaLiga since the start of the 21st century behind Kevin Gameiro (4 minutes), David Villa (4 minutes), and Luis Suárez (5 minutes)—Dovbyk has now scored 14 goals and six assists in 20 league games. That means he still has half the season ahead of him to score 11 more goals, something that appears to be anything but unlikely. In other words, paying a record transfer fee of €7.75m is starting to pay off for a club that spent seven of the last ten years in the second division. Dovbyk quickly became used to life in Spain and is the most in-form striker in the league and in the race to win Europe's Golden Boot.
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“Míchel’s quick, possession-based style seems to do wonders for Dovbyk, especially in combination with the excellent performances by wingers Sávio and Yan Couto, who provide the forward with plenty of assists,” Transfermarkt Area Manager Spain Iván Turmo said. “But the current LaLiga top goalscorer was also able to adapt to the quick counter-attacking style quickly.” Dovbyk confirmed this much in an interview with Ukrainian-based Sport Arena TV. “I got used to it really quickly; I didn’t even notice it.”
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Why was it so easy for the striker? “He lives in Girona’s sports center,” Turmo said. “The presence of his compatriot Viktor Tsygankov there was the key for him to be quickly integrated into the team. The two are inseparable. Last year, Girona also hired a Ukrainian equipment manager, who doubles as a translator. A clever move by the Catalans,” Turmo added. The 26-year-old winger, Tsygankov, joined Girona six months before Dovbyk arrived from Dynamo Kyiv and was one of the big reasons for his friend to sign at the Catalan-based club. Tsygankov spent countless hours talking to Dovbyk about Míchel’s work and how he leads the club. But the two not only work well together off the pitch. Four of Tsygankov’s seven-goal involvements this season were in direct play with Dovbyk.
“I have integrated myself well into the team, and I am who I am,” Dovbyk said. “But now everyone calls me ‘The Machine’, maybe because they are comparing me with Erling Haaland.” It isn’t surprising that the Man City striker is mentioned whenever there is talk about Dovbyk. Both not only play for City Football Group clubs but are also comparable in style of play.
“Dovbyk is a forward who combines different types,” Ivan Quirós, who has made a name for himself on social media as a Girona expert, said. “He looks like a static tank and finisher but is much more. He drops deep to support the flow of the game whenever his team struggles to score. He understands to hold onto the ball and give room to the wingers by forcing the center-back out of position. He is fast and powerful and used to escape to the wings to create space for players playing behind him, who he then can assist—Dovbyk has recorded six assists, more than any other center-forward in LaLiga. As a finisher, he is a big reason for his club’s success; his power, movements, speed, and shot make him almost unstoppable.”
Turmo agrees. “Measured at 189cm, Dovbyk may look slow at first glance, but he is actually fast and coordinated,” Turmo said. “On top of that he is technically gifted and able to score goals from every position. He is a fantastic counter-attacking player but also has a great shot and the ability to foresee situations.”
Late bloomer Dovbyk: Failure at Midtjylland helped his mentality
The hype surrounding Dovbyk is real, even if the native of Cherkasy is a typical late bloomer in comparison with Haaland, whose development seemed predetermined from an early age. Up until the U21, Dovbyk wasn’t a consistent member of the Ukrainian junior national team. Furthermore, Dovbyk’s breakthrough at Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk only happened because the club needed to promote reserve players during the 2016/17 season due to financial difficulties. After Dnipro’s relegation, Dovbyk left for Midtjylland—a club in Denmark with an excellent reputation for developing talents—but was unable to make the jump from the reserve side to the first team.
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“When he returned to Ukraine in 2020, Dovbyk’s career was already considered a failure,” Coordinator of International Operations at Transfermarkt and expert in Ukrainian football Artjom Zavodnyk said. “SK Dnipro, a different club than the one he previously played for, paid just €450,000 to sign him. That fee rose to €2.2m as Midtjylland was clever enough to integrate a sell-on clause in the original deal—a smart decision. Dovbyk exploded at Dnipro scoring 14 goals and five assists in 17 games before the 2021/22 season was canceled [due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine]. Last season, he won the Golden Boot and was also excellent in the Conference League.”
The time in Denmark helped Dovbyk mentally, Zavodnyk pointed out. “Talents playing just one good season are often quickly hyped in states belonging to the former Soviet Union, which has led to several players becoming quickly jaded,” Zavodnyk said. “That hasn’t been the case when it comes to Dovbyk, whose body language is reminiscent of Robert Lewandowski. “Girona was relatively unknown in Ukraine before Tsygankov joined the club and the transfer was a surprise but turned out to be a smart decision.”
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Unsurprisingly, plenty of speculations about the next step have already been made. Will Dovbyk leave Girona after just one year? The Transfermarkt rumor mill has linked the player with a potential move to Inter Milan, Barcelona, Atlético Madrid, and Chelsea. It could, therefore, be difficult to keep him long-term. Dovbyk is under contract until 2028 but contracts in Spain always include an exit clause. Girona have never publicized Dovbyk’s exit clause, and depending on the publication there are different reports about the size of the clause. “It will be interesting to see whether it will be Dnipro or Midtjylland who will participate in the next transfer,” Zavodnyk said. “When he returned to Ukraine, the Danish club only sold 50% of the transfer rights, and Girona only acquired 70% of his rights. 30% remain with Midtjylland.”
Turmo, who has been paying close attention to the Spanish transfer market, said: “His future could be in Serie A but some think that he might head to sister club Manchester City. The sporting director of the English club, Txiki Begiristain was at the Motilivi to watch the victory over Sevilla. In theory, he was there to watch City Football Group players Sávio and Couto, but his presence also increased speculations that Guardiola wants Dovbyk for his team.”
Dovbyk, in the meantime, has downplayed rumors linking him with Man City and categorically denied rumors that suggested he was going to leave in January. “I know for sure that I will finish the season with Girona,” Dovbyk said. “As for Manchester City? Haaland is there. If they sell him, then it is worth considering. But until then, there is no chance.”
Girona fans like Ivan Quirós will have noted that statement with some relief. But the Spaniard is under no illusion that Dovbyk will remain with the club if he continues his goalscoring pace. “Despite being part of the City Football Group, Girona is a small club, dependent on developing and selling players,” Quirós said. “The only chance we have is that we will sell other players and protect him, with the added component that the club might qualify for the Champions League.”
