Shakhtar Donetsk will welcome RB Leipzig to the Polish city of Warsaw which they call their home, for now, looking for a win that will send them to the next round of the 2022/23 UEFA Champions League (UCL) season.
Venue: Stadion Wojska Polskiego (Warsaw)
Key Statistics
Shakhtar Donetsk have lost just one of their last 14 competitive games (W7, D6).
The hosts have kept just one clean sheet in their last ten games.
They have failed to score only once in their last 17 games.
RB Leipzig are unbeaten in their last nine games (W7, D2).
They have scored at least twice in eight of their last nine games.
The visitors have won only one of their last six away games in all competitions (D2, L3).
They have lost six of their last nine UCL away matches (W3).
Head to head
Shakhtar Donetsk beat RB Leipzig 4-1 in the first and only meeting between both sides.
Latest performances in all competitions
Shakhtar Donetsk: D-D-W-W-D
RB Leipzig: W-W-D-W-W
Shakhtar Donetsk
Amidst the war going on at home, Shakhtar Donetsk are flying the flag of Ukraine very proudly in the UEFA Champions League this year. And they will continue their quest to remain in the biggest club football competition in Europe this Wednesday when they host Leipzig at the Stadion Wojska Polskiego which they call home for now.
Having picked up six points from their opening five games of the campaign (W1, D3, L1), the Ukrainian side come into this round sitting third in the group, three points behind their visitors.
With a better head-to-head record than Leipzig, Igor Jovićević’s side can book their place in the round of 16 for the first time since the 2016/17 season with a victory here having hammered the German outfit 4-1 earlier on in the competition.
The manager has urged the Shakhtar fans to play their part, insisting “we believe we can play well and the fans will help us do it”, even though they are playing in Warsaw for now. He will be encouraged by his side’s strong form throughout the season, as Real Madrid are the only team to have defeated Shakhtar in 14 competitive games (W7, D6) this season.
Possible Shakhtar Donetsk starting line-up
Anatolii Trubin; Lucas Taylor, Mykola Mativiyenko, Valeriy Bondar, Yukhym Konoplia; Yehor Nazaryna, Artem Bondarenko, Taras Stepanenko, Georgiv Sudakov, Mykhaylo Mudryk; Danylo Sikan.
Injured: Mariam Shved, Viktor Korniienko, Oleksandr Zubkov
Doubtful: Oleg Ocheretko
Suspended: None
RB Leipzig
After becoming the first club to defeat Real Madrid this season when they secured a 3-2 win against the Spanish giants at home last week, RB Leipzig will travel to Warsaw looking to get a result that will seal their place in the next round of the UCL.
Marco Rose’s men dug deep against Madrid last time out to secure that win and ensure that their chances of progressing to the round of 16 for the third time in their brief history remained in their hands.
It’s not enough to win Madrid, the visitors must push to finish the job by qualifying and so manager Marco Rose is warning his players that they are not through yet, stating “We have to try and take the final step in Warsaw.”
Judging by their form, Rose can be confident of getting a good result here as his side are currently unbeaten in their last nine games. They beat Bayer Leverkusen 2-0 in the Bundesliga at the weekend to make it seven wins from their last nine matches (D2). The Bundesliga side scored at least twice in eight of those outings too.
However, their results on the road in Europe might provide a cause for concern, as Leipzig have lost six of their last nine UCL away matches (W3).
Regardless, they will fancy their chances of getting at least the draw they need to get over the line.
Possible Leipzig starting line-up
Janis Blaswich; Mohamed Simakan, Willi Orban, Abdou Diallo; Kevin Kampl, Xaver Schlager, Emil Forsberg, Dominik Szoboszlai, Christopher Nkunku; Yussuf Poulsen, Timo Werner.
Injured: Lukas Klostermann, Konrad Laimer, Péter Gulácsi
Doubtful: None
Suspended: None
Odds
Prediction
Shakthar 1-1 Leipzig
