H2H: Real Madrid vs Shakhtar Donetsk – Prediction (Champions League

Preview and Teams Comparison.

Vinícius Júnior has netted the opener in the last four games in which he’s found the net – all four ended in a Madrid win ‘to nil’. Júnior Moraes has scored four goals across Shakhtar’s last four European matches – three were scored either in the first five minutes or after the 85th. Nine of the last 16 UCL home goals Madrid have conceded (56.25%) came after the 60th minute.

Real Madrid Insights.

A 1-0 home defeat versus newly-promoted Cádiz derailed Real Madrid’s unbeaten start to the La Liga season, but does mean the last four competitive games in which they failed to keep a clean sheet saw them concede before HT. They haven’t done that in either of the two previous H2Hs versus Shakhtar Donetsk though (W1, D1), albeit Madrid’s last four UEFA Champions League (UCL) games did see both teams score. The hosts’ defeat at the weekend ended an eight-game winning run at home, a streak that saw six Madrid clean sheets, four goalless first halves, and Madrid score in both halves on just three occasions. There’s a cautionary note, however, as the hosts have actually won just one of their last six UCL home matches (W1, D2, L3).

Shakhtar Insights.

Whilst Shakhtar are unbeaten in five matches – with the last two witnessing them net the opener within five minutes – the 13-time Ukrainian champions have won just one of their last seven UCL fixtures (W1, D4, L2), albeit they held their opponents on the day level at HT in the last five. Despite that, they’re on a 21-game run without a clean sheet in this competition. Last season’s Europa League semi-finalists are expected to lose here, and their last 12 UCL away defeats saw Shakhtar fail to find the net, although five of the previous six did see them register a goalless first half.