Our prediction for this Champions League match:
High-flying PSV will be aiming to extend their winning run in all competitions to four games when they face Shakhtar Donetsk at their Philips Stadion. The Dutch champions have been scoring goals for fun of late and they are likely to adopt yet another attack-minded approach against the Miners. A man to keep an eye on in the home team will be Ricardo Pepi, who scored a hat-trick in a 5-0 crushing of Groningen at the weekend, while the likes of Fofana, Nagalo, Schouten, Veerman, and Luuk de Jong remain in the recovery room.
The Ukrainians, on the other hand, are eyeing their sixth consecutive win in all competitions, but seeing that PSV have turned their Philips Stadion into a real fortress, we do not believe that Marino Pusic’s men are going to grab something from Wednesday’s clash. Goalkeeper Tymur Puzankov should be the only absentee in the away team.
Highlighted Player (Luuk de Jong):
The 26-year-old Dutch striker Luuk de Jong is considered one of Europe’s deadliest strikers with his incredible return of goals in games he spends playing. Luuk de Jong began his football career at De Graafschap in 2008, but moved on to Twente only a year later.
The tally of 39 goals in 76 league appearances earned him a transfer to Borussia Monchengladbach, but his spell in Germany ended in disappointment. Bundesliga club attempted to revive his career by sending him out on loan to Newcastle United but his stint with the English club yielded even more disappointment and concluded in utter disaster with De Jong playing 12 games without scoring a single goal for the Magpies.
A return to Netherlands and PSV Eindhoven turned out to be a proper hit for the 26-year-old striker who has restored his scoring touch with more than 50 goals for the Boeren after less than 90 games.
Highlighted Team (Shakhtar Donetsk):
Despite the fact that they were founded back in 1936, Shakhtar Donetsk were struggling to win the Ukrainian Premier League trophy until 2002. The Miners have established themselves as the dominant force in Ukrainian football and it has to be noted that they won their ninth domestic trophy in 2014.
Shakhtar Donetsk were playing at Donbass Arena in the past, but due to war in Donbass the club temporarily moved to Arena Lviv. In 2009 the Miners won the UEFA Cup trophy under Romanian boss Mircea Lucescu, beating Werder Bremen in the title game. Croatian full back Dario Srna was named the man of the match. Dynamo Kiev are considered Shakhtar Donetsk’s main rivals and there have always been fireworks in meetings between the two sides.
Shakhtar have a rivalry with Metalurh Donetsk as well and the two local rivals face each other in the Donetsk Derby. Chelsea ace Willian, Manchester United star Mkhitaryan and Manchester City midfielder Fernandinho all played for Shakhtar in the past.