Preview

September 13, Zhytomyr, Polissia Central City Stadium, 18:00
The live broadcast will be available on UPL.TV

Match build-up

Shakhtar return after a two-week pause due to international fixtures. During this period, 12 Miners represented their national teams and joined the club only a few days before the meeting with Metalist 1925. The rest of the players held a training cycle under the guidance of Arda Turan in Lviv this week, preparing for the upcoming UPL and Ukrainian Cup matches.

We remind that Shakhtar remain among the top three in the Ukrainian league table, having collected 10 points from 4 matches (goal difference: 8-3). In the previous round, the Miners defeated Oleksandriia (2-0) thanks to goals from Artem Bondarenko and Pedrinho Meanwhile, the team’s top scorers this season remain Kaua Elias (5 goals) and Alisson (4).

Opponents

Last season, Metalist 1925 finished third in the main stage of the First League and, having overcome Livyi Bereh in the play-offs, returned to the UPL. In the new season, the team led by Mladen Bartulovic started with a draw with Obolon (0-0) and a defeat to Kryvbas (0-2), but then gained momentum and recorded convincing wins over Oleksandriia (4-1) and Rukh (2-0). At present, the Kharkiv side have 7 points (goal difference: 6-3) and occupy 6th spot in the UPL table. The Yellow-and-Blues also made a successful start in the Ukrainian Cup, beating Obolon (2-0) in the first round. The team’s top scorer at the beginning of the season is midfielder Ramik Hadzhyiev (2 goals).

Match background

Shakhtar and Metalist 1925 faced each other 5 times in the Ukrainian Championship: 4 victories for the Miners, 1 draw. Total goal difference: 13-1 in favour of the Pitmen.

Previous UPL meeting

The teams played at the Arena Lviv on December 3, 2023. The first half passed without goals, but the Pitmen imposed themselves in the second: in the 59th minute, Oleksandr Zubkov broke the deadlock, with Dmytro Kryskiv converting a penalty in the 78th minute to seal the result. 2–0 – victory for the Miners.

The Metalist 1925 vs Shakhtar match will be officiated by the judging panel headed by Oleksii Derevinskyi. Assistants – Oleksii Myronov and Svitlana Hrushko. VAR – Vitalii Romanov.