Shakthar Donetsk hosts Manchester City in a match from Group F

Shakthar Donetsk hosts Manchester City in a match from Group F of the UEFA Champions League.

Shakthar are in a good position in their chase of the 2nd place in the group. The Ukrainian team have three points advantage in front of Napoli, just one round before the end of the group stage. This means that Shakthar needs just one point against Manchester City to qualify for the 1/8-finals of the Champions League.

They could qualify even if they lose, but in the same time Napoli shall not win against Feyenoord on Dutch soil.

Shakthar are a little bit lucky here. Manchester City already won the first place in this group, so it’s almost sure that the manager Pep Guardiola will give his key players a rest. The Catalan manager will use many of his reserve and young players, which is increasing Shakhtar’s chances of getting at least one point in this game. And this point will send them to the 1/8-finals.

These two teams already met once at the Ettihad Stadium. Manchester City won this match with 2-0. Shakthar played good, but Man City’s class was too much for them. Now we will see a much different Manchester City team. Just a few days later Manchester City are playing against Manchester United in the Premier League, so Pep Guardiola would want to keep his key players fresh. And this is Shakthar’s big chance here.

In the last round of the group stage Shakthar suffered a 0-3 defeat against Napoli in Naples, while Manchester City needed a late winner to beat the outsider in the group Feyenoord at home. It’s curious to see what team Pep Guardiola will pick in this game. And can Manchester City play in the same way without some of their key players?