frantic finish not enough published: thursday 11 december 2003, 0.03cet
fc dynamo kyiv 1-1 internazionale fc both sides are eliminated after a pulsating finale in kiev.
fc dynamo kyiv and internazionale fc both bowed out of the uefa champions league after a pulsating encounter at the olympiyski stadium finished 1-1.
victory required arsenal fc's 2-0 win against fc lokomotiv moskva meant that a victory for either side would have given them second place in group b. although dynamo's diogo rincón cancelled out daniel adani's header to set up a thrilling finish, neither side could find a winner.
injury worries the home side had a number of injury problems, with coach oleksiy mykhaylychenko missing andriy husin, denys onischenko, serhiy fedorov and roberto nanni through injury. inter, meanwhile, were able to welcome back fabio cannavaro, iván cordoba and andy van der meyde.
attacking formation inter coach alberto zaccheroni opted for an attacking 3-4-3 lineup, but it was the home side who began the match in more positive fashion. tiberiu ghioane twice and maksim shatskikh both tried their luck from distance in the opening minutes, but all the efforts were off target.
clear chance the home side created the first clear chance of the match in the 17th minute as captain valentin belkevich broke down the left and found diogo rincón in space in the penalty area, but the brazilian forward pulled his effort wide.
volleyed effort dynamo goalkeeper olexandr shovkovskiy was forced into action for the first time two minutes past the half-hour, as emre belözoglu's cross was flicked on by javier zanetti and fell perfectly for adani, but shovkovskiy was perfectly placed to parry his well-struck volley.
shovkovskiy saves inter came close again two minutes later, but this time zanetti's effort was comfortably held by the dynamo goalkeeper. both sides might have scored as the half drew to a close, with diogo rincón heading over when completely unmarked, while zanetti shot wide at the other end.
near misses early in the second half, both sides came close in a frantic passage of play, as emre's through-ball found julio cruz. although the striker lifted the ball beyond shovkovskiy, his effort was bouncing wide with substitute obafemi martins unable to turn in. just seconds later, dynamo won a corner and the ball eventually found its way through to leko, whose effort evaded toldo but was cleared off the line by matias almeyda.
martins menace the introduction of martins gave inter more physical presence up front, and the nigerian played a part as inter almost snatched the lead, bursting into the penalty area before his deflected shot fell at adani's feet. a goal looked certain, but shovkovskiy was quickly off his line to divert the ball wide.
adani on target the goal inter had been threatening arrived in the 68th minute. martins won a free-kick around 30 metres from goal, emre floated the ball into the penalty area, and adani’s powerful downward header gave shovkovskiy no chance. inter looked to be heading for the knockout stages and martins twice and vieri both missed chances to make the game safe. at the other end, toldo had to turn leko's effort behind at full stretch.
late equaliser the italian side were made to pay for their profligacy five minutes from time as, from one of dynamo's numerous corners, the ball broke kindly for diogo rincón who could not miss from close range.
frantic finish the equaliser left both sides needing to score again, and the home team spurned three golden opportunities to clinch a crucial win, as diogo rincón, andriy nesmachniy and florin cernat all failed to find the target. at the other end, shovkovskiy turned substitute alvaro recoba's effort aside with his right foot, but it was all in vain as the final whistle confirmed that inter will go into the uefa cup.
