Drama in the last seconds. "Shakhtar played a thriller in the Europe League playoffs. Video
Shakhtar Donetsk drew with French side Marseille in the first leg of the UEFA Europa League last 16 in 2023/24. Nominally, the home match at the Volksparkstadion stadium in Hamburg, Germany, ended with a score of 2-2.
Marino Pushych team could have opened the scoring in the 2nd minute. After a mediocre game in defense, the French almost conceded after a shot by Oleksandr Zubkov. The ball went over the crossbar.
After that, the Pitmen seized the initiative, controlling the ball in the center circle. The guests tried to crush the Ukrainians with pressure, but the orange-and-blacks easily broke the pressure with long passes.
Gradually, the pace of the game increased. The ball was hardly kept in the center circle, but there were no dangerous moments on either side.
Shakhtar vs Marseille
It was noticeable that Shakhtar were focused on playing a short passing game, thus trying to get past the opponent's defense. "Marseille attacked with long balls, relying on their fast forwards.
In the 27th minute, Belgian referee Erik Lambrechts "took away" a clean sheet from Shakhtar. The Ukrainian players launched a counterattack, in which Leonardo Balerdi brutally brought down Oleksandr Zubkov.
Alexander Zubkov was hit in the legs
The referee wanted to let the moment play out, but blew the whistle a few seconds before he could. The referee blew his whistle when the ball bounced to the Marseille goalkeeper, but did not take into account that the goalkeeper might not be able to stop the round ball. As a result, Eginaldo's goal was disallowed.
The second half began with mutual attacks. In the 59th minute, Gattuso's men created the most dangerous moment of the game. Luis Enrique scored with a header near the post.
The team from Marseille pressed on and succeeded in the 64th minute. Azarov lost the ball and did not keep up with the opponent. There was a split pass that cut off the entire line of the Ukrainian defense, and the flank pass found Aubameyang. The 34-year-old Gabon striker had only to put his foot down.
The winning result on the scoreboard lasted only 4 minutes. Matvienko confidently sorted out the confusion in the other team's penalty area, equalizing the score.
This goal woke Shakhtar up. The Ukrainians began to attack much more dangerously and had several real chances to snatch the victory.
Shakhtar snatched a draw
The last seconds were marked by a dramatic denouement. In the 90th minute, Aubameyang created a chance that was converted by Iliman Ndiaye, and in the 93rd minute, Eginaldo put the match to bed.
"Shakhtar Ukraine vs Marseille France 2: 2 (0: 0, 2: 2)
Goals: 0:1 - 64 Obameyang, 1:1 - 68 Matvienko, 1:2 - 90 Ndiaye, 2:2 - 90+3 Eginaldo.
"Shakhtar - Riznyk, Konoplya (Gocholeishvili, 77), Matvienko, Bondar, Azarov, Zubkov, Stepanenko (Nazarina, 72), Sudakov, Bondarenko (Traore, 90), Sikan (de Macedo, 77), Eginaldo.
"Marseille - Lopez, Klos, Gigot, Balerdi, Merlin, Kondogbia, Harith, Unai, Luis Enrique (Ndiaye, 72), Aubameyang (Correa, 90), Pemi (Meite, 90).
Cautions: Balerdi (27), Konoplya (49), Zubkov (78), Eginaldo (90), Bondar (90).
The return leg is scheduled for February 22.
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