- Shakhtar win ahead of Palace clash
- Palace’s biggest game of the season awaits
- Former Barcelona man leading opponents
Ahead of Crystal Palace’s Europa Conference League semi final on Thursday, opponents Shakhtar Donetsk recorded a 3-1 win. Palace will go into the tie the fresher of the sides, having a day’s extra rest than their Ukrainian counterparts.
Playing away in Lviv, Ukraine, Shakhtar beat fourth bottom side Kudrivka as they extended their lead atop the Ukrainian Premier League. Hirnyky, or The Miners in English, won 3-1, as their 16th Premier League title edges closer by the game.
Previewing Thursday’s clash
Shakhtar are managed by former Barcelona and Galatassaray midfielder Arda Turan, who has an impressive 57% win rate since his appointment. His second role in his management career has seen great success, as his side currently continue their impressive run of form.
Currently seven games unbeaten, with three wins in their last three games, the Ukrainian side will possibly prove to be Palace’s most difficult task to date in Europe.
Their squad has an interesting makeup, with a core spine of Ukrainian players surrounded by Brazilian talents. 20-year-old Alisson Santana and 19-year-old Luca Meirelles lead Shakhtar’s goal scoring charts in the Conference League.
Both are a fair distance from IsmaÏla Sarr who has the chance to take the lead in the golden boot race, currently on seven goals, one behind Marius Mouandilmadji of Samsunspor and Mikael Ishak, Lech Poznań’s striker.
It’s Palace’s biggest game of the season, and will be their second most impressive win in history, should things go to plan, after the FA Cup Final which has led them to this point.
Palace are familiar with Ukrainian opposition this season, opening their league phase in Lublin against 29-time Ukrainian Premier League winners Dynamo Kyiv. A 2-0 win in that game, Palace’s travelling support will be hoping to see that win replicated in Krakow this week.
Shakhtar’s Route to the Semi Finals
Turan guided his side to a sixth place finish in the league phase, winning four games and losing just one.
A 4-3 aggregate win over Polish side Lech Poznań, despite defeat in the second leg at home set up a quarter final tie against AZ Alkmaar.
During the league phase, Palace beat AZ 3-1 at Selhurst Park, courtesy of an IsmaÏla Sarr brace.
Shakhtar won the first leg 3-0 at home, meaning their 2-2 draw in The Netherlands resulted in a 5-2 win on aggregate. Their reward, a semi final against the bookies’ favourites to lift the trophy in Leipzig, but Shakhtar will be hoping to disrupt those odds and navigate their way to a win over two legs.
For Palace, the task is pretty clear. Their fate in the Conference League will define the season for Oliver Glasner’s side. With the second leg at home, the minimum aim for Thursday is to avoid defeat. A draw would be okay, but a win would make the second leg a much simpler task.
