Preview

November 3, Kyiv, V. Lobanovskyi Dynamo stadium, 17:00

Match build-up

After 10 UPL matches, Shakhtar have 21 points (goal difference: 20-10) and are currently in 4th spot in the table. However, the Pitmen have 2 games in hand and are potential leaders of the league. The team under the leadership of Darijo Srna claimed a confident victory over LNZ (3-0) in the previous round.

The Miners continue to compete on 3 fronts but under the guidance of new head coach Marino Pusic. The Bosnian coach managed to make his debut in the Champions League with a match against Barcelona, and earlier this week he secured his first victory – the Orange-and-Blacks beat Viktoriia Sumy (3-0) in the Ukrainian Cup quarter-finals. Now Pusic is waiting for the debut Ukrainian Clasico in his coaching career. The best scorers of the team in the season are Danylo Sikan and Oleksii Kashchuk (4 goals each).

Opponents

Dynamo have played only 9 matches in the current UPL season, having 5 wins, 1 draw and 3 losses (goal difference: 23-15). Currently, the team under the leadership of Mircea Lucescu are in the 7th step of the table with 16 points. The Kyiv side did not avoid losing points in the last 3 rounds: defeats against Polissia (2-3) and Dnipro-1 (0-1), draw with Kolos (1-1). In addition, Dynamo finished their campaign in European competitions and the Ukrainian Cup early, so this season they are fully concentrating on the domestic league.

Vitalii Buialskyi (6 goals), as well as Vladyslav Vanat (4) and Andrii Yarmolenko (4) are the most prolific players of Dynamo in the Premier League. The latter will miss the meeting with the Miners: Vanat – due to disqualification, Yarmolenko – due to injury.

Match background

Shakhtar and Dynamo played 70 matches in the Ukrainian Championship. The Miners have 26 victories, 19 games ended in a draw, with the Kyiv-based team proving stronger on 25 occasions. Total goal difference: 86-84 in favour of the Orange-and-Blacks.

Previous meeting

On April 22, 2023, the teams met at the Dynamo stadium as well. Shakhtar, which were rushing towards there 14th title in the spring, started more actively, and already in the 12th minute Taras Stepanenko scored from a very long distance. Then the Miners calmly held the advantage, almost not allowing the opponents to create opportunities, but the Kyiv outfit found their chance at the set piece: in the 82nd minute, Oleksandr Andriievskyi equalized the score through a free kick below the crossbar – 1-1.