The battle for the top spot continues with surprises in Cherkasy and Rivne, along with air raid alerts: highlights from Round 13 of the UPL.

Kiev's "Dynamo" continues to top the league table after their victory over "Polesie", while "Alexandria" keeps close behind, thanks to a hat-trick from their central defender. Air alerts in Kyiv, a fan dog, surprises in Cherkasy, and a draw - this is how the 13th round of the Ukrainian Premier League unfolded. UNN has decided to share the results, new achievements, and memorable moments from this round of the UPL.

Maximov's Milestone Victory

The UPL round opened with the Odessa "Chornomorets" hosting Poltava's "Vorskla". This match was crucial for both teams, as a win could allow "Chornomorets", sitting 11th in the table, to pull ahead of Poltava, who were in 13th place, just two points behind.

As is tradition, the first symbolic kick of the ball was made by Oleksiy Litovchenko, who stepped onto the field with his son - a member of the Ukrainian Armed Forces who joined the defense of Ukraine in 2022 and fought with the 28th Separate Mechanized Brigade named after the Knights of the Winter Campaign. During his service, he was deployed in various areas and suffered injuries in the Bakhmut region on June 16, 2023, and has been undergoing rehabilitation for almost a year.

The first dangerous moment occurred just 2 minutes into the match when Ilya Krupsky shot in the penalty area after a cross from the wing, but the ball sailed over the bar. "Vorskla" had their chance just 10 minutes later, but Kovtalyuk lacked precision. The Odessans created almost no goal-scoring opportunities in the first 45 minutes, only occasionally breaking out on counterattacks.

During the halftime break, "Chornomorets" honored the unparalleled sports achievement of the sailors' team from 1974. Fifty years ago, the Soviet Championship concluded in November with an historic bronze medal for the Odessa club. In celebration of the 50th anniversary of this significant event in domestic football history, the club expressed gratitude and presented specially ordered unique badges to the stars of the golden generation of 1974: players Oleksandr Dehtyarev, Serhiy Pavlenko, Volodymyr Rodionov, Viktor Zubkov, Viacheslav Leschuk, Oleksandr Holokolosov, and masseur Volodymyr Sokolov. Club awards were also presented to Anatoliy Doroshenko, who is currently undergoing treatment.

The ceremony was attended by the head of the regional football federation, the head of the Odessa OVA Oleg Kiper, and the general director of FC "Chornomorets" Anatoliy Misyura.

After the break, the character of the game did not change. It was an evenly matched game. The teams responded to each other's chances, but the turning point of the match came late in the game - in the 76th minute, "Vorskla" initiated their attack, which was accompanied by a flurry of rebounds and deflections, but ultimately the ball went for a corner. After the corner kick, Chelyadin backheeled the ball into the six-yard box, where it hit Butko, who failed to control it, and the ball ricocheted to Ndukwe, who was quickest to react in the box and pushed it into the net - 1:0.

Until the end of the match, "Chornomorets" tried to equalize, but time ran out, and the final whistle confirmed a narrow victory for the Poltava side, marking the 80th match for the "Vorskla" coach in the UPL.

"Goalless Draw" in the Battle of the Underdogs

The second match of Friday, featuring the capital's "Left Bank" against Petrovsky's "Inhulets", was postponed for 25 minutes due to an air alert in Kyiv. However, the Russians could not spoil the mood of Kyiv midfielder Ruslan Dedukh, who received the award for the best player of his team last month.

The first kick of the ball was made by Senior Warrant Officer of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Yuriy Glukhentiy, who began his military service back in the 1980s, participated in ATO from 2014 to 2017, and joined the Kyiv Territorial Defense in 2022, receiving distinctions for the defense of Kyiv and the Kyiv region.

The first chance for "Inhulets" came in the 5th minute when Kislenko headed the ball directly into the hands of Mekhaniv. Subsequently, Mekhaniv had to intervene again, saving a header from Vivald, who had a corner kick. 

"Inhulets" even scored in the 32nd minute, but the referee disallowed the goal because Malysh, who finished the guests' attack, had handled the ball. After the break, the pattern of the game did not change, but Kobin's charges looked more convincing. First, Pyatov struck brilliantly into the lower corner of "Left Bank", but Mekhaniv saved his team. "Left Bank" recovered in the dying moments of the match. The hero for the capital side could have been Kogut, who had a great chance to score in the 73rd minute, but Palamarchuk saved "Inhulets".

By the end of the match, both teams were clearly just playing out time, and the final whistle confirmed a "goalless" draw - 0:0.

Shocking Victory for "Obolon" for the First Time in 1.5 Months

In the first match of Saturday, Cherkasy's "LNZ" hosted another underdog - the capital's "Obolon", who were sitting second to last. The first kick of the match was made by Senior Soldier, former serviceman of the 156th Separate Battalion of the 118th Territorial Defense Brigade of Cherkasy Region, Oleksandr Noseko.

Oleksandr participated in battles for territorial integrity from 2014 to 2016, defending the cities of Mariupol, Novoazovsk, and the Luhansk airport. On February 26, 2022, during the defense of the city of Popasna in Luhansk region, he was injured. He is now a player on the team of war veteran athletes and a participant in the All-Ukrainian "Invictus Games".

The first 15 minutes were dominated by "LNZ", who looked more confident in attack and had opportunities to score. However, in the 16th minute, Kyiv midfielder Chernienko unexpectedly struck from outside the penalty area - the "LNZ" keeper leaped to deflect the ball over the bar for a corner. "LNZ" responded five minutes later when Putrya crossed the ball across the box, and Karas almost deflected the ball into his own net. "Obolon" had a great chance in the 35th minute when Grusha fired from close range at Kucherenko, but he saved his goal again. Moments later, Kucherenko made what was arguably the save of the round when Chernienko shot from outside the box, and the ball, after a deflection, flew into the top corner, but Kucherenko managed to save it.

After the break, "Obolon" finally got their moment: Grusha outmaneuvered a defender on the right flank and crossed - Kucherenko saved, but Slobodian was first to the rebound. "LNZ" even managed to equalize, but Suarezh's goal was disallowed as the foreign player had handled the ball.

The final whistle confirmed a shocking victory for "Obolon", who last won in September - 1:0.

"Alexandria" Breathes Down "Dynamo" Neck Thanks to Kampush's Hat-Trick

In the second match of Saturday, "Alexandria", which is vying with Kyiv's "Dynamo" for first place in the league table, hosted Lviv's "Karpaty", who are in the middle of the table.

The first kick of the match was made by Senior Soldier of the 41st Separate Mechanized Brigade Maksym Tkachenkо. The brigade was tasked with defending Kupiansk and temporary Yara and is currently performing combat missions in the Kursk direction.

Maksym also received a commemorative jersey from "Alexandria" head coach Ruslan Rotan with the number 41.

The match commenced with a shot from Oleksandr Belyaev just 2 minutes in, who shifted from the left flank and aimed for the far corner. Oleksandr Kemkin managed to deflect the threat. "Karpaty" responded with a shot from Oleg Ocheretko, who connected with a cross from Yevhen Pidlepents - the "Alexandria" keeper dealt with the danger.

By the middle of the first half, "Karpaty" looked more active, but their attempts did not lead to goals. Specifically, in the 27th minute, Chachua struck powerfully but missed the near corner. In the 36th minute,