Match report
Wednesday, September 15, 2021
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Shakhtar played Sheriff away on the Champions League group stage MD1
For the 16th time in their history, the Miners started their group stage campaign in the most prestigious competition in Europe. Meanwhile, for the champions of Moldova it was a debut in the competition of this level. Roberto De Zerbi could not count on Trubin, Kryvtsov and Solomon, so the experienced Pyatov stood between the sticks, Marlon and Matviienko appeared at centre-back, with Ismaily and Fernando operating on the left flank, accompanied by Pedrinho and Tete in the attacking third.
Difficult start
In the opening minutes, the teams outlined the script for the entire match: Shakhtar dominated possession and tried to rip open the hosts' defence through short passes, with the Tiraspol team responding with sharp counterattacks. And to differ from the first shots by Sheriff players that missed the target, in the 16th minute another blistering attack was successful - Adama Traore got on the end of the right-hand cross and opened the scoring. The visitors tried to immediately equalise, but the efforts of Marlon, Pedrinho and Ismaily went wide. Lassina Traore had a good chance after Fernando's pass midway through the first half, but the goalkeeper coped with his cannon shot. Mykola Matviienko also failed to score – the ball went just inches off the post.
Pressure without finishing
Shakhtar started the second half in an expectedly powerful way. Substitute Marlos immediately made an attempt, with the ball ending up in the hands of Athanasiadis. Long-range attempts by Pedrinho and Fernando did not reach the goal as well. Another cross by Pedrinho was parried by the goalkeeper with some difficulty, and Marlon’s header whizzed just inches off the goalpost. And against the background of this pressure from the Donetsk side, the hosts goal in the 62nd minute was completely illogical: Yansane finished off a left cross and doubled the Moldovans' lead. De Zerbi immediately reacted with a double substitution, fielding Alan Patrick and Mudryk. Mykhailo could have scored one, but he narrowly missed a Matviienko delivery. After Traore’s shot and ball deflection, the latter was close to hitting the top corner of the net of the Tiraspol-based side. The hosts had another chance after launching a counterattack, but Pyatov parried away Castaneda's attempt. The final assault by the Orange-and-Blacks did not work out as such, therefore the score remained unchanged. 0-2 - Roberto De Zerbi's team started their UCL campaign with a defeat at the hands of Sheriff.
Shakhtar will play their next Champions League match in Kyiv on September 28 against Inter Milan. The game will start at 19:45 at the NSC Olimpiyskiy. Tickets for the game are on sale now.
Sheriff Tiraspol 2-0 (1-0) Shakhtar Donetsk
Tiraspol, Sheriff Stadion, att: 5,205
Goals: 1-0 A. Traore (16’), 2-0 Yansane (62’)
Shakhtar: Pyatov (c), Dodo, Marlon, Matviienko, Ismaily, Maycon, Marcos (Patrick, 65’), Tete (Marlos, 46’), Pedrinho, Fernando (Mudryk, 65’), L. Traore
Further details are available in the match centre.
Difficult start
In the opening minutes, the teams outlined the script for the entire match: Shakhtar dominated possession and tried to rip open the hosts' defence through short passes, with the Tiraspol team responding with sharp counterattacks. And to differ from the first shots by Sheriff players that missed the target, in the 16th minute another blistering attack was successful - Adama Traore got on the end of the right-hand cross and opened the scoring. The visitors tried to immediately equalise, but the efforts of Marlon, Pedrinho and Ismaily went wide. Lassina Traore had a good chance after Fernando's pass midway through the first half, but the goalkeeper coped with his cannon shot. Mykola Matviienko also failed to score – the ball went just inches off the post.
Pressure without finishing
Shakhtar started the second half in an expectedly powerful way. Substitute Marlos immediately made an attempt, with the ball ending up in the hands of Athanasiadis. Long-range attempts by Pedrinho and Fernando did not reach the goal as well. Another cross by Pedrinho was parried by the goalkeeper with some difficulty, and Marlon’s header whizzed just inches off the goalpost. And against the background of this pressure from the Donetsk side, the hosts goal in the 62nd minute was completely illogical: Yansane finished off a left cross and doubled the Moldovans' lead. De Zerbi immediately reacted with a double substitution, fielding Alan Patrick and Mudryk. Mykhailo could have scored one, but he narrowly missed a Matviienko delivery. After Traore’s shot and ball deflection, the latter was close to hitting the top corner of the net of the Tiraspol-based side. The hosts had another chance after launching a counterattack, but Pyatov parried away Castaneda's attempt. The final assault by the Orange-and-Blacks did not work out as such, therefore the score remained unchanged. 0-2 - Roberto De Zerbi's team started their UCL campaign with a defeat at the hands of Sheriff.
Shakhtar will play their next Champions League match in Kyiv on September 28 against Inter Milan. The game will start at 19:45 at the NSC Olimpiyskiy. Tickets for the game are on sale now.
Sheriff Tiraspol 2-0 (1-0) Shakhtar Donetsk
Tiraspol, Sheriff Stadion, att: 5,205
Goals: 1-0 A. Traore (16’), 2-0 Yansane (62’)
Shakhtar: Pyatov (c), Dodo, Marlon, Matviienko, Ismaily, Maycon, Marcos (Patrick, 65’), Tete (Marlos, 46’), Pedrinho, Fernando (Mudryk, 65’), L. Traore
Further details are available in the match centre.