Preview

July 24, Kyiv, NSC Olimpiyskiy, 19:30

Match build-up

Shakhtar have significantly updated the roster in the summer off-season. The team are led by Italian coaching staff headed by Roberto De Zerbi, for whom this match will be the first competitive one. The Orange-and-Blacks signed up the newcomers Marlon, Pedrinho and Lassina Traore, with Yukhym Konoplia, Artem Bondarenko and Danyil Sikan being back from loan.

Another piece of good news is the start of a long-term partnership with Puma. Ahead of the season, Shakhtar introduced the new kits. The fans already had the opportunity to see the first-choice orange kit on the players directly in action as the team played a friendly match vs Obolon at the NSC Olimpiyskiy on July 20. The friendly ended in a convincing 5-0 win with full dominance and an overwhelming advantage in ball control - this is one of the hallmarks of the style that Roberto De Zerbi instils in the team.

If you have not yet purchased a season ticket for the new season, but want to do so and secure a place in the stands of the Olimpiyskiy, there is a choice of two types of season tickets available: one covering 8 matches and the full one (covering all games). As a reminder, season ticket holders get priority when buying tickets for Champions League matches and tangible discounts. You can also buy tickets for the game vs Inhulets from UAH 50 separately.

Opponents

In July, Inhulets held an overseas training camp in Bulgaria. There were five friendly games held: the opponents were CSKA 1948 (1-1), Academica (1-0), Montana 1921 (2-2), Macedonia GP (1-1) and Pirin (2-3). In the offseason, the team was strengthened with some experienced footballers, including the goalkeeper and Shakhtar Academy graduate Yevhen Halchuk, the former Oleksandriia forward Artem Sitalo, and the experienced defenders Yevhen Opanasenko, Dmytro Pospelov and Pavlo Polehenko.

In a pre-match interview with the club press office, the team’s head coach Serhii Lavrynenko mentioned Shakhtar's ambitious goals and the Miners’ busy work in the transfer market. And Inhulets’ objectives for the opening round is to make the opponents get nervous and fulfil the game plan.

Head-to-head record

Last season, in fact, only one match of two took place - Shakhtar won it narrowly. In the first stage, Inhulets were handed a 0-3 default defeat. Thus, in the head-to-head record, there are two wins by the Orange-and-Blacks with a goal difference of 4-0.

Previous meeting

The Orange-and-Blacks finished the 2020/21 season with a game vs Inhulets - the match took place on May 9 at the Olimpiyskiy. The only and winning goal was scored by Tete in the 16th minute: after Alan Patrick's pass, he ran away from a defender, beat the goalkeeper and sent the ball into the back of the unguarded net.