Our prediction for this Champions League match:
Shakhtar Donetsk
Match Time & Date:
12/12/2018
03:00 PM
Prediction: 3-1
Olympique Lyon
Oblasny SportKomplex Metalist will host Wednesday’s football game between Shakhtar Donetsk and Olympique Lyon. Shakhtar Donetsk proved their worth in a 3-2 win at Hoffenheim and thanks to the triump the Miners moved one step closer to booking their place in the Europa League knockout stages. To make things even better for the Ukrainians, a victory over Olympique Lyon will see them advance to the Champions League last 16, therefore, we predict that they are going to leave their hearts on the field in their last group game. Les Gones, on the other hand, are likely to adopt a cautious approach in Wednesday’s clash, but seeing that Shakhtar Donetsk have been in a splendid form of late, we are tempted to put our money on Paulo Fonseca’s men. A man to watch in the home team will be Junior Moraes, who has netted 14 goals in the Spanish top flight so far this term.
Highlighted Player (Taras Stepanenko):
Taras Stepanenko is a defensive midfielder who plays for Shakhtar Donetsk in the Ukrainian Premier League. Stepanenko was born on 8 August, 1989 and he played for the likes of Torpedo-Kosmos, Arsenal Kharkiv, Torpedo Zaporizhia and Kosmos Zaporizhia during his youth career.
After making 16 appearances (scoring 1 goal) for Metalurh Zaporizhia, he made his senior debut on 4 March, 2007 at the age of 17. Stepanenko played 81 league games for the club between 2007 and 2010 and then he made probably the best decision of his career, joining big-spending club Shakhtar Donetsk. He signed a five-year contract with the Miners on 11 May, 2010 and he has been playing for the Ukrainian giants ever since.
Stepanenko made his 33rd appearance for the Ukrainian national team at the 2016 European Championship finals in France. The Shakhtar Donetsk footballer made his Ukraine debut on 17 November, 2010 in a 2-2 draw with Switzerland. He is capable of playing as both defensive and a central midfielder.
Highlighted Team (Olympique Lyon):
Commonly referred to as Lyon, Olympique Lyonnais is the French club which play their games at the Parc Olimpique Lyonnais with a capacity just a pinch short of 60,000. Lyon is one of the most popular clubs in France with a vast fan base on par with Paris Saint-Germain and Olympique de Marseille.
The club achieved moderate success during the 1960s and 1970s led by the likes of Bernard Lacombe and Jean Djorkaeff, while the golden era of the French side came at the start of the new millennium when Lyon began to achieve greater success both in France and on the international level.
It was not until 2002 that Lyon won their first ever Ligue 1 title which sparked an ongoing national record-breaking streak of seven successive titles. During that time Lyon were regular participants of the UEFA Champions League. The French club reached quarter-finals on two occasions, while they even played in the semi-finals in the 2009-10 season.
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