Shakhtar Donetsk vs Braga Europa League Preview

Shakhtar Donetsk vs Braga Europa League Preview

Shakhtar Donetsk vs Braga is the repeat of last season’s Europa League quarterfinal when Shakhtar eliminated Braga 6-1 on aggregate. It will also be the first match for new Shakhtar Donetsk coach, Paulo Fonseca, against his former club (read Shakhtar Donetsk’s full Europa League preview right here).

Last season’s encounter, and the fact that Shakhtar have hired Braga’s coach, Fonseca, to replace long-standing coach, Mircea Lucescu, are not the only connections between the two clubs. In fact, there will be some familiarity on Thursday, as this is already the fifth meeting between the teams, with Shakhtar having won every single encounter according to UEFA.

But Fonseca will not be the only familiar personality for Braga when they travel to Ukraine to face Shakhtar Donetsk on Thursday at the Arena Lviv. Brazilian left-back, Ismaily, has also played for both clubs, and his transfer has come under scrutiny after it was exposed by the football whistle blower homepage, Football Leaks.

The controversy aside, the match between the Ukrainian and Portuguese sides should be an interesting encounter as, this season, Shakhtar has looked like their former selves by dominating the Ukrainian Premier League with seven wins and one tie in eight matches.

Shakhtar are now six points clear of their archrival, Dynamo Kyiv, and appear to be the likeliest candidate to win the league title this season. This sports prediction web site certainly rates Shakhtar with their odds on the Europa league title contenders. Braga, meanwhile, seems to have compensated for the loss of head coach, Paulo Fonseca, in that they are currently fourth in the competitive Portuguese Primeira Liga.

For now, new head coach, José Piseiro, has been able to continue the excellent work of his predecessor, and the match up between the two clubs on Thursday should make for an interesting battle between two coaches who know each other well from competing against one another in Portugal—Piseiro was the head coach of FC Porto last season.

Indeed, there will be some tactical similarities between the two sides, as both coaches prefer a 4-2-3-1 formation with quick attacking plays. At the same time, last season’s result, and Shakhtar strong run in the UPL so far this season, will make the Ukrainians the favourites to walk away with the victory on Thursday.

Possible Line-ups

Shakhtar Donetsk:

Formation: 4-2-3-1

Pyatov – Ismaily, Rakitsky, Kucher, Srna – Stepanenko, Fred – Bernard, Kovalenko, Marlos – Ferreyra

Manager: Paulo Fonseca

SC Braga:

Formation: 4-2-3-1

Matheus (Marafona) – Marcelo Goiano, Rosić, Pinto, Baiano – Mauro, Vukcević – Eduardo, Horta, Santos – Ahmed Hassan

Manager: José Piseiro

By Manuel Veth –

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