Vladimir Muntyan

Volodymyr Fedorovych Muntyan (Ukrainian: Володимир Федорович Мунтян, Russian: Владимир Фёдорович Мунтян, Romanian: Vladimir Muntean), (born 14 September 1946, Kotovsk, USSR) is a Soviet and Ukrainian midfielder of the 1960s and 1970s. Muntyan is considered to be one of the best and most talented players to ever represent Dynamo Kyiv and Soviet Union. He is also the only player apart from Oleg Blokhin (his teammate in the 1970s) who has won 7 Soviet championships. His brother Viktor Muntyan is also a former professional football player.

Vladimir Muntyan
Personal information
Full name Volodymyr Fedorovych Muntyan
Date of birth (1946-09-14) 14 September 1946
Place of birth Kotovsk, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union
Height 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)
Position(s) Midfielder
Club information
Current team
 FFU staff
Youth career
FC Dynamo Kyiv
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1965–1977 Dynamo Kyiv 302 (57)
National team
1968–1976 USSR 49 (7)
Teams managed
1980–1982 SKA Kyiv
1986–1988 COSFAP Antananarivo
1992–1994 Ukraine Olympic team
1995–1997 Guinea
1998 Cherkasy
1999 Orion Kyiv
2000 Tavriya Simferopol
2001 Obolon Kyiv
2002 Alania Vladikavkaz
2003–2004 Kryvbas Kryvyi Rih
2004–2005 Vorskla Poltava
2008 Ukraine U-21(interim)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Biography

Early years

A son of a factory worker and a nurse, Muntyan became interested in acrobatics and competed successfully in Kyiv's citywide competition, winning accolades in his age category. His family eventually relocated to live near a professional soccer grounds in Kyiv, where young Muntyan and his friends would hang out, acting as ball boys to the elders. While once juggling a ball, he was approached by a soldier, who asked him if he was interested in taking up football as a sport. Muntyan said yes and was taken to Mikhail Korsunsky, who was a famous local children's coach at the time. He quickly recognised Muntyan's potential.

Youth years

Due to the boy's natural talent, he was included in Kyiv's youth team with people like Semen Altman and Anatoly Byshovets (both coaches now). After a Spartakiada match between the Kyiv and Moscow teams, which Kyiv won, Dynamo Kyiv youth coach Mykhaylo Koman offered young Muntyan to come to a training session with the senior team the next day at 11:00. The young boy turned up outside the ground, but was so scared to see his idols Valery Lobanovsky, Andriy Biba, that he hid behind a tree and didn't make the team bus. However his friend Anatoly Byshovets helped him to get over the fear and eventually he turned up to a training session.

Early career

Muntyan joined the Dynamo Kyiv team as a 15-year-old, when the main team coach was Victor Maslov. Despite weighing only 60 kg (9.5 stones) and being only 170 cm in height, he was encouraged to play and his skills were further enhanced by the training. When five of then current squad left to join 1966 Soviet football team for the World Cup, Dynamo Kyiv managed to win a double (championship and the cup) with Muntyan stepping in from the reserves as one of the main players.

Statistics for Dynamo
Club Season League Cup Europe Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Dynamo 1965 3040--70
1966 26820--288
1967 19410--204
1968 365----365
1969 27632423410
1970 25320--273
1971 18620--206
1972 30931613911
1973 2869250428
1974 2224282346
1975 292--40332
1976 (s) 10310--113
1976 (a) 131--81212
1977 16230--192
Total 3025734735637170
  • The statistics in USSR Cups and Europe is made under the scheme "autumn-spring" and enlisted in a year of start of tournaments

Honours
1970
1969
1966, 1967, 1968, 1971, 1974, 1975, 1977
1966, 1974,
1975
1975
1968
1972
1965, 1969, 1972, 1973, 1976
1973
1977

Ballon d'Or

References
  1. Группа "Блестящие". 15 украинских футболистов, претендовавших на "Золотой мяч". Tribuna.com (in Russian). Retrieved 7 June 2018.
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