Real Madrid will have the opportunity to revenge last season’s back-to-back defeats to Shakhtar Donetsk when the two teams meet again on Tuesday.
Madrid were blown apart in both of last season’s group stage fixtures, losing 2-3 at the Alfredo Di Stefano Stadium before suffering a 2-0 loss in Kiev.
Despite the defeats, Madrid managed to top the group, going on to reach the semi-final of the last season’s UEFA Champions League.
However, with a new manager in the dugout, Madrid seems to be a different side though there were signs of their weaknesses in the two games they played before the international break.
While Madrid had their weekend game postponed, Shakhtar were in scintillating form as they thumped Zorya Luhansk by six goals to one in the Ukraine Premier League as they moved to within just three points off league leaders Dynamo Kyiv.
In the four games involving both Shakhtar and Madrid, each team has two wins with Madrid scoring 10 goals across all four games while their opponent has seen eight goals scored.
In the battle between the gaffers, Roberto De Zerbi has met Carlo Ancelotti on three occasions, losing two and managing one draw in their encounters.
WHERE AND WHEN?
Venue: Olimpiysky National Sports Complex.
Date: Tuesday, October 19.
Time: 19:00 GMT.
TEAM NEWS
The home side are expected to be without the services of Lassina Traore, who has been ruled out of the season due to a knee injury while Junior Moraes continues to recover from a cruciate knee ligament injury.
For Madrid, Eden Hazard’s knock while on international duty wasn’t serious as first thought as the player trained on the grass on Sunday. Dani Carvajal, Dani Ceballos, and Gareth Bale are still going through their recovery sessions while Ferland Mendy is likely to have some minutes under his belt on Tuesday.
EXPECTED STARTING XIs
Shakhtar: Pyatov; Dodo, Marlon, Matvienko, Ismaily; Pedrinho, Maycon, Stepanenko, Patrick, Solomon; Tete.
Madrid: Courtois; Nacho, Militao, Alaba, Mendy; Valverde, Casemiro, Kroos; Rodrygo, Benzema, Vinicius.
PREDICTION
Shakhtar Donetsk 1-3 Real Madrid
