Shakhtar Donetsk vs Gent: Preview and Prediction

Shakhtar Donetsk vs Gent
UEFA Europa League – Group H
Date: Thursday, 20th October 2016,
Kick-Off at 18:00 UK
Venue: Arena Lviv.

Shakhtar Donetsk were brilliant in their Europa League group games so far and were rightfully rewarded with back-to-back wins. Their defeated Turkish Super Lig outfit Konyaspor 1-0 away from home on matchday 1, which was followed by a comfortable 2-0 win against Braga on matchday 2 put them at top of Group H. The disappointment of not making it into the Champions League group stage might be still haunting the Ukrainian side. But they can still boast a home record of a 7 match unbeaten in European nights with 5 wins and 2 draws.

The visiting Gent have also made a relatively good start to their campaign by picking up a draw at Braga and defeating Konyaspor at home 2-0. With 4 points they currently trail Shakhtar by 2 points and this set the stage for this fixture being a key decider in final standings of the group. Just like their Thursday’s opponent, Gent can also boast of an unbeaten record as they have won 4 and drawn 2 of their 6 Europa League matches this season. And they have conceded just 2 goals during the period.

Shakhtar Donetsk vs Gent: Head-to-Head Stats

This is another Europa League clash where two sides are meeting for the first time in the competition.

They did met in a friendly this June, in which Shakhtar came away with a 2-0 win at Gent.

Shakhtar Donetsk have a good competitive record against Belgian sides as they picked 5 wins and 4 draws from the 10 meetings, losing just once. They are unbeaten in the 5 matches in Ukraine with 3 wins and 2 draws.

Gent’s lone meeting with a side from Ukraine was in the third qualifying round of UEFA Champions League, which they lost by a 6-1 aggregate after defeats in both legs.

Shakhtar Donetsk vs Gent: Prediction

Shakhtar Donetsk have grown into a force to reckon in Europe in recent years. They lost only once in their last 12 matches Europa league and managed 9 wins and 2 draws. They are unbeaten in 9 matches at home in all competitions with 8 wins this season.

And this will definitely contradict with Gent’s overall away form this season as they have failed to win in 7 out of 9 matches so far. Also they suffered defeats in two previous encounters with a Ukrainian side. While Shakhtar have an unbeaten record at home against clubs from Belgium.

The home side looks good to back for a comfortable win and as their form comparison suggest that this could be an easy one for Shakhtar.