Champions League
Yuriy VIRT: “I was surprised by Shakhtar’s football”
In the next match of the Champions League group stage on October 4, Shakhtar players will play away against Belgian Antwerp.
Former goalkeeper of Ukraine and Shakhtar national team Yuri Virt In his meeting with the Sport.ua reporter, he shared his expectations for tomorrow’s match:
– To be honest, I don’t even recognize Shakhtar in their performances in the all-Ukrainian arena. Some ambiguity arose in the actions of the “miners”. If before it did not matter to them where they would play in the minority or in equal numbers, this season the situation has changed dramatically. In particular, in the last calendar match with Rukh, the Donetsk team took second place both at the beginning of the match and after the dismissal of Yaroslav Rakitsky. A similar situation occurred in the Vorskla match.
– Perhaps such changes in tactics are due to the emergence of a new helmsman: Patrick van Leeuwen?
– This is the weirdest thing. Last season, Zarya, led by the Dutch coach, showed intensity, quick movements and the motivation of the players was high. Patrick was invited to Shakhtar so that he could “offer” such a sharp attacking style to the Donetsk team. While the Pitmen’s actions were more regrettable, this did not happen.
– However, in fairness, it must be said that the Dutchman was not able to field the most suitable squad for the fight due to injuries and disqualification of leading players.
– To accept. It is quite difficult to find the equivalent of Matvienko, Bondar, Traore, Bondarenko, but other key players are also in the ranks, where is their passion or desire to take the initiative in difficult times?
– After these words, doubts arose as to whether the “miners” would survive in Antwerp tomorrow.
– Unfortunately, the truth is that the other members of the group, Barcelona and Porto, are stronger now. Therefore, who will continue to compete in European competitions in the spring will be decided by the rivalry between Shakhtar and Antwerp. By the way, the “citizens” are one of those teams that score few goals, but at the same time almost do not concede any goals. Shakhtar does not like to play with such an opponent. At least last season he needed space. However, on the other hand, the home team will want to take advantage of the walls in their own field and therefore will be able to focus on attacks with great forces. Perhaps, under these conditions, in the counterattack, the guests will be lucky to find the shortest path to the goal. But remembering how desperate the Pitmen have been defending lately, one worries about the back end. Therefore, if everything ends with the signing of the peace agreement in Belgium tomorrow, it will be a positive result for Shakhtar,” said Wirth.
It was previously known that Serbian Milorad Mazic was appointed as the auditor for the Champions League 2nd round match between Antwerp and Shakhtar Donetsk, which will be played on October 4.
Source: Sport UA
I am a sports journalist who has written for a number of Sportish. I have a background in journalism and have been writing since I was young. My main focus is sports news, but I also write about general news. I am currently working as an author at Sportish.
Real Madrid’s French forward Kylian Mbappe He became the top scorer of the Champions League in 2025.
The 27-year-old striker has 14 goals.
Inter’s Lautaro Martinez is in second place with 12 goals.
Third place in the summary rankings for 2025 was taken by Bayern’s Harry Kane (scored 11 goals).
Champions League’s top scorers in 2025
- 14 – Kylian Mbappe (Real Madrid)
- 12 – Lautaro Martinez (Inter)
- 11-Harry Kane (Bayern)
- 10 – Serou Guirassi (Borussia)
- 9-Ousmane Dembele (PSG)
- 9 – Erling Haaland (Manchester City)
- 9 – Victor Osimhen (Galatasaray)
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Source: Sport UA
I am a sports journalist who has written for a number of Sportish. I have a background in journalism and have been writing since I was young. My main focus is sports news, but I also write about general news. I am currently working as an author at Sportish.
Former coach of Dynamo Kiev Alexander Showkovsky He should have been sacked in August after a poor performance in the Champions League qualifiers.
The blue-whites, who lost twice to Cypriot Paphos in the 3rd round of the European Cup (0:1 and 0:2), were relegated to the Europa League and then promoted to the Conference League.
“I know that Dinamo management believes that a change of coach could and should be made in the summer, after they lost to Paphos in the Champions League qualifiers.
Then an opportunity arose. But the necessary candidate was not available,” the source said.
Due to the lack of alternatives, the president of the Kiev club decided to leave Shovkovsky as head coach, but in November the Ukrainian specialist was nevertheless fired and left Dynamo.
Source: Sport UA
I am a sports journalist who has written for a number of Sportish. I have a background in journalism and have been writing since I was young. My main focus is sports news, but I also write about general news. I am currently working as an author at Sportish.
We continue to examine the future of Donetsk shakhtar To buy tickets directly to the main stage Champions League 2026/27.
This will be possible if the place reserved for the team that wins the Champions League trophy is redistributed.
All important moments of the match are available in LIVE mode Telegram Sport.ua
Donetsk Miner They are in fourth place with a coefficient of 50.250 among the clubs competing for a possible position at the heart of the Champions League.
In the last European week, the Donetsk club added +2.625 points. This increase was achieved with a 0-0 draw with Croatian Rijeka in the 6th round of the Conference League and a sixth place in the main round final table.
Main rival Greek Olympiacos – 56,500 points remaining. The Miners can regain the 6,250-point lead if they perform well in the spring part of the European Cups.
It is interesting that Shakhtar lost the first place in the UPL (Cherkasy has the same number of points as LNZ – 35 points each), and Olympiacos lost the lead in Greece to the AEK team (36 points against 37). Ukrainian striker Roman Yaremchuk plays for the team of the city of Piraeus.
Positions rangers (59,250), 4th in Scotland and Copenhagen (53.375), placed 5th in Denmark, looks less competitive in the rankings due to its position in the national championships. Leader only in championships Dinamo Zagreb And RB Salzburg (44,000 each) but there is no certainty that the turn will come.
Let us remind you that if the cup holder buys a ticket to the Champions League through the national championship, there will be a vacancy in the main squad in the 2026/27 Champions League. In this case, a balance will arise again and if Shakhtar wins the UPL and is ahead of Olympiacos in the UEFA club rankings (or the Greek club does not become the champion of Greece), it can get a direct ticket to the base of the Champions League.
If the Piraeus team is higher in the rankings and takes advantage of the available space, the Donetsk club will start from the 4th quarter of the Champions League, not the 2nd quarter, in case they win in the UPL.
Candidates for direct tickets to the Champions League 2026/27 main stage
(In case the quota reserved for the Champions League champion becomes vacant)
UEFA Club Rankings 2026
infographics
Source: Sport UA
I am a sports journalist who has written for a number of Sportish. I have a background in journalism and have been writing since I was young. My main focus is sports news, but I also write about general news. I am currently working as an author at Sportish.
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