Shakhtar Donetsk are regulars in the Champions League group stage and are looking to finish off the Austrian club as they already lead 1-0 on aggregate.
Shakhtar showing its growth in Europe
In the first leg, Shakhtar Donetsk showed their maturity and growth on the European stage. They controlled the game and played it to their pace. They took advantage of an inexperienced Wien team and played it to perfection. It was also key that they walked away from the first leg in Vienna with an away goal. Marlos found the bottom left corner right before halftime to give Shakhtar Donetsk the 1-0 lead. It turned out to be the only goal of the game but it was a key goal as away goals count so much in cup ties such as the Champions League.
Even after losing Douglas Costa to Bayern Munich and Luiz Adriano to AC Milan this summer, Shaktar still hold a number of quality young players. They still boast the likes of midfielders like Taison and Alex Teixeira. They also have Bernard, who is attracting interest from Everton, playing in an attacking role for the Ukranian team. Having developed players like Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Willian, and Fernandinho, it is not surprising to see such talent on this squad. They are proving to be a steady force in Europe as they look to make a group stage appearance for the 6th straight time. They are looking to improve on a Round of 16 exit that saw them thrashed by Bayern Munich.
Can Rapid Wien complete another comeback?
But Shakhtar are well aware of the task ahead of them as they saw what Rapid Wien did to Ajax in the last round. Down two goals to the Dutch giants, Wien stormed back and won the second leg 3-2 to send them through to this stage. Even though they are down 1-0 and they needed to score to stay alive, they got the job done; Wien are confident in themselves.
Shakhtar manager Mircea Lucescu expects a tough game for his team, saying that "Rapid are very aggressive team so we expect a tough game"
Wien will look to give Shakthar problems as they chase that key away goal first. If Wien want a chance in this game, they cannot allow Shakthar to score the opening goal. Although they have came back from deficit like this, they will be in a very tough environment and beatingShaktar at home is not easy. Bayern Munich drew 0-0 in the Round of 16 first leg last year and serves as a notice to teams playing in Donetsk. But Wien are remaining confident in themselves as they look to slay another European giant.
Head coach Zoran Barisic said "We are in a difficult position after a 1-0 home defeat but we are going to give Shakhtar problems".
Expect Wien to give their hosts problems as one of Europe's underground giants in Shaktar look to finish off the testy team from Vienna.