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Shakhtar Donetsk and Anderlecht Brussels will square off in a very interesting Europa League Last 16 clash, with the Ukrainean side being the favorite to advance.
The hosts won 7 of their last 8 games in 2015, only failing against Real Madrid, 3-4. Shakhtar continued the trend this year, winning both matches in Ukraine and knocking out Schalke in the Europa League – 0-0 at home and 3-0 in Germany. Despite losing players and being affected by the situation in Ukraine, also having to cope with a slow start of the season, Shakhtar is now pumping on all cylinders and is looking really good.
Anderlecht was very, very lucky to advance from a meeting with Olympiakos in the last round. The Belgian side was by far second best in both matches, but a fortunate 1-0 victory at home, coupled with a good performance in extra time in Greece, gave them an undeserved 3-1 aggregate win. However, Anderlecht definitely deserves credit for knocking out a strong, in form team like Oly, no matter the circumstances in which they did it. The qualification didn`t help Anderlecht much domestically, as they claimed only 1 point in 2 games after knocking out Olympiakos. The visitors are now 9 points behind league leaders Club Brugge.
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Team news & lineups:
Azevedo, Stepanenko, Dentinho and Fred are out for Shakhtar. The visitors can`t count on Iseka and Obradovic, while Defour is not 100% fit, but he will probably be forced.
Shakhtar: Pyatov – Srna, Rakitskiy, Kucher, Ismaily – Kovalenko, Malyshev – Taison, Wellington Nem, Marlos – Gladkiy
Anderlecht: Proto – Najar, Deschacht, Kara, Buttner – Defour, Dendoncker – Praet, Tielemans, Suarez – Okaka Chucka
Knocking out Olympiakos was definitely the highlight of the season for Anderlecht, as the Belgians struggled domestically and still do. They will need to play even better against Shakhtar, as they will probably not have the same good fortune in this tie.
Shakhtar might not have the same strength as in the last few seasons, but they are still a very capable and experienced team at this level, clearly proving it in the last round against Schalke. Traveling to Ukraine will be difficult for Anderlecht and if they don`t have the same luck as they did against Olympiakos, they will lose this one. They actually lost in regular time in Greece anyway, despite fending off a lot of Oly chances.
Anderlecht is not showing anything special this season, their manager is under pressure, their form is also suspect, so my tip is Shakhtar to win. Lucescu’s side should do the job at home – even if they play their home matches in Lviv. Prediction: Shakhtar Donetsk – Anderlecht 2-0.
Pick: Shakhtar
Odds: 1.72 @ 1xBet
Stake: 8
Possible profit: 5.76
Event date: 10 March
