Dnipro vs Shakhtar: preview

22-05-15 19:58:09

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On Matchday 25 of the Premier League, Shakhtar will play an away game with Dnipro. We bring you a traditional preview of the game.

23 May, Dnipropetrovsk, Dnipro Arena, 18:00
Live broadcast on 2+2 channel

Following two Cup games, Shakhtar and Dnipro will face each other in the league. Teams know well each other’s weak and strong sides well, and considering such a tight schedule, they have managed to study each other thoroughly. The Pitmen eliminated the opponents in the race for the trophy and now have a chance to officially cement second place in the Premier League 2014-15 and take part in the Champions League. For that, they have to show a high level of game and take points in Dnipropetrovsk.

Match officials

Referee – Yuriy Vaks (Khmelnitskiy)
Assistant referees – Natalya Rachinska (Kyiv), Oleksandr Korniyko (Mirgorod)
Fourth official – Yuriy Moseychuk (Chernovtsy)
Referee observer – Volodymyr Petrov (Kharkiv)

Personnel

During a communication with journalists, Myron Markevych said that he was not going to take risks and field key players in the game with Shakhtar. But it should not make Shakhtar’s players feel complacent. On Matchday 24, in Kyiv, Dnipro’s back-up players displayed their level – Dynamo managed to score the winning goal only in the end of the match.

Teams’ scoring average in the league:
Dnipro – 1,83 goals per game;
Shakhtar – 2,79 goals per game.

Statistics

Team results. Ukraine
 

The teams played their first third-place match in the 1992 season. In Zaporizhzhya, the Dnipropetrovsk team celebrated a 3-2 win. Yuriy Belichenko and Serhiy Atelkin scored for Shakhtar, with Serhiy Konovalov and Vadym Tischenko netting for Dnipro.

The most frequent scoreline is 2-0 (5 games won by the Pitmen, 4 by Dnipro).

The highest-scoring win was registered on 30 August 1998. Then, Shakhtar won 6-0 thanks to hat tricks from Andriy Vorobey and Serhiy Popov.

In total, 857 thousand fans have attended matches involving Shakhtar and Dnipro, 18, 600 average per game.

Individual results

Coaches

Teams’ previous league game:

Ukrainian League 2014-15. 12th round

November 9, 2014. Lviv. Arena Lviv. Att: 22,417. 11C.

Shakhtar (Donetsk) - Dnipro (Dnipropetrovsk) - 0:0

Shakhtar: Pyatov, Srna (c), Ordets, Rakitskiy, Shevchuk, Stepanenko (Fred, 45+1), Fernando, Costa (Marlos, 69) Teixeira, Taison (Bernard, 83), Adriano

Unused subs: Kanibolotskiy, Chygrynskiy, Dentinho, Hladkyi

Head coach: Mircea Lucescu

Dnipro: Boyko, Fedetskiy, Douglas, Mazukh, Strinić, Kankava, Cheberyachko, Zozulya (Bartulovich, 79), Bruno Gama (Shahi, 57), Konoplyanka (k), Kalinic (Kravchenko, 90+2)
  
Unused subs: Lashtuvka, Vlad, Politylo, Seleznyov

Head coach: Myron Markevich

Booked: Ordets (42), Zozulya (45), Konoplyanka (53), Mazukh (55), Fred (66), Fedetskiy (74)

Sending-off: Bartulovic (87)

Referee: Anatoliy Abdula (Kharkiv)

A goalless draw in the first round of the championship followed a demolition job of BATE. Interestingly, back then Mircea Lucescu did not make a single change to the starting line-up. In the debut of the game the teams exchanged with set piece situations: Srna fired the ball into the wall, Konoplyanka saw his effort fly just wide of the post. Later Pyatov saved a Fedetskiy shot and a strike from Ordets. A minute from half time whistle Stepanenko got injured after an individual battle with Kalinic. Fred replaced Taras.  

The second half also proved to be intense. On 50 minutes, Teixeira struck a shot following a cross from Shevchuk from the edge of the penalty area – Boyko turned the ball away for a corner. Dnipro again created a dangerous situation after a set piece situation, when Pyatov parried the ball away to the crossbar following a shot from Konoplyanka. The Pitmen had decent chances to take the lead on 73 and 77 minutes, but Teixeira and Fred missed the target. That draw became Shakhtar’s first stalemate in the current league campaign.

FC Shakhtar