Former player of Dnipro and the Ukrainian national team Andrey Polunin praised the performance of Shakhtar Donetsk in the group stage of the Champions League. Recall that the Pitmen's rivals in the group were Real Madrid, RB Leipzig and Celtic. As a result, the Donetsk team took third place and now they will continue to fight in the 1/16 finals of the Europa League.
“We know what situation our country is in. We are at war. 4 months ago we did not know what would happen to Ukrainian football. No one imagined what would happen to Shakhtar. The leadership of the Donetsk club made a bet on the young guys who were on the bench, some players were returned from Mariupol. I must say thanks to Igor Jovichevich - he was able to unite the guys.
So the third place in the group with Real Madrid and Leipzig is the maximum result, especially for a young team. It is important to note here the fact that many players have revealed themselves this fall: Trubin, Konoplya, Bondar, Sudakov, Bondarenko, Mudrik and Sikan have taken a big step in their development. Everyone saw their progress. And Mudrik generally doubled in price. All this is nice.
And look who of the European giants moved from the Champions League to the Europa League. Barcelona, Juventus, Sevilla, Ajax, Bayer Leverkusen, Sporting CP and Salzburg. Good company, isn't it? And Atlético and Marseille have generally finished their performance in the current European competition. So everything is known in comparison,” Polunin said.