Ex-football player of Shakhtar Donetsk Oleg Matveev in an interview "TEAM1" shared his prediction for the match of his former team with the Scottish Celtic in the 2nd round of the Champions League group stage, which will be held today in Warsaw.
Oleg Matveev— Oleg, after Shakhtar's sensational victory over Leipzig, should we expect something similar from the Pitmen in the match against Celtic?
- I think that the Shakhtar players are now in such a state that they can easily play good football with Celtic and still win. For a negative result, young guys, apparently, will not be scolded. The team, as shown by the match with Leipzig, plays cheerfully, without fear for the final result, so I won't be surprised if Shakhtar win.
- In your opinion, given all the problems of Shakhtar with the equipment, could there be an underestimation on the part of the German team?
- This is hardly possible, because Leipzig won the day before against Eintracht - 4:0. After the match with the Pitmen, already with a new coach, he defeated Borussia Dortmund - 3:0. But the performers remained the same. I do not think that the German team could allow this. Here, rather, Shakhtar themselves jumped above their heads, plus luck turned to face the team. In general, the victory of the Ukrainian team was well-deserved, and now it doesn’t matter how ready someone was (smiles).
— The match will take place in Warsaw. Does this reduce the Pitmen's chances of winning?
- I don't think. Shakhtar have been playing outside their native walls for eight years already, and this does not prevent the team from keeping the mark. Although there are many Ukrainians in Poland who, I believe, will come to support their compatriots.
- Will Shakhtar play as number one?
- It is hard to say. “Celtic is also studying our team. There are a lot of fast performers at Shakhtar now who need space, so I think that the miners will choose more counter-attacking football. This is what they do well. If you follow the table, then the Scots need to attack more, because strategically our team can be satisfied with a draw.
- Then what will be your prediction for the upcoming fight?
- For many young Shakhtar players, this is the first Champions League, the guys' eyes are burning, so no one will think about a draw, but the opponent cannot be discounted, despite the big defeat in the first round from Real Madrid. If the miners win, it will be great, but I will bet on a draw - 1:1.
Sergey DEMYANCHUK
