Shakhtar secured a crucial Champions League victory, defeating Antwerp and setting a record for our country. Video

Shakhtar defeated Belgian side Antwerp in the 5th round of the Champions League group stage. The nominally home match in Hamburg, Germany, at the Volksparkstadion stadium, ended with a score of 1-0, which guaranteed the club 3rd place in Group H and the Europa League playoffs.

This was the seventeenth appearance in the European competition in the club's history, which is a record for Ukraine. Dynamo's closest pursuer has participated in the spring stage of European competitions 13 times (since 1991).

From the first minutes, the Ukrainians seized the initiative, playing as the first team. Shakhtar players were not afraid to press the opponent and immediately enter the qualifiers in case of losses. Antwerp, on the other hand, did not put pressure on Shakhtar, meeting our players in their own half of the field only.

In the 13th minute, the referee awarded a free kick for a handball by a Belgian player on the left flank near the Antwerp goal, which proved to be effective. After Zubkov's free kick, Matvienko made an extremely good head shot, sending the ball straight into the net.

After opening the scoring, Shakhtar began defensing, giving the opposition the upper hand. Antwerp continued to look for ways to Riznyk's goal, using vertical passes and flank throws, but it was not successful. Gradually, the game moved closer and closer to the Ukrainian champion's penalty area. In the 24th minute, Mark van Bommel's men organized the first truly dangerous moment. Michel-Ange Balikwisha's shot was blocked by a defender.

In the 34th minute, Shakhtar's winger made a serious mistake in the support area, allowing the Belgian forward to get into a striking position and shoot directly. Riznyk punched the ball away.

The Ukrainian team managed to push the game away from their goal, but the Shakhtar counterattacks did not result in any dangerous shots. In the 40th minute, Shakhtar staged a real assault and could have doubled their lead, but first Neverton hit the goalkeeper, and then Sudakov made the head shot over the crossbar.

The second half began with a lot of martial arts. The players did not avoid contact, which often ended in a violation of the rules. Shakhtar tried to stretch their opponents to gain space and create an easier way out of the defense.

Shakhtar tried to create free zones where the fast midfielders could work. Antwerp pressed, but Shakhtar had more opportunities to score. Azarov in the 54th minute and Stepanenko in the 63rd minute hit the crossbar once each.

Towards the end of the match, the players of the Donetsk club were noticeably tired. The five-time Belgian champion dominated the field but failed to score. In addition, Matvienko and Zubkov had a chance to score in the final seconds, but the former's shot into the empty net was deflected by a defender, and the latter's "shot" went wide of the post.

After this victory, Shakhtar gained 12 points, guaranteeing themselves the third final place in the standings and the Europa League playoffs. In the final round of the Champions League, Marino Pušić's men will compete with Porto for 2nd place in Group H and the Champions League playoffs. The Portuguese lost their match in the 5th round to Barcelona (1-2).

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