Barcelona have the opportunity to be the first team this season to officially secure a spot in the Champions League knockout stage as they meet Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk in Hamburg, Germany.
The Catalan club sit top of Group H, having collected the maximum nine points from their first three games. A fourth win in as many games would officially put them out of reach from the bottom two and mathematically secure a place in the Round of 16.
After two successive years in which they went out in the group stage — the first two times in club history that had happened — Barcelona can now put themselves back among the upper echelon of European football.
Shakhtar, however, won’t go down without a fight. They battled hard in the reverse fixture two weeks ago, pressuring Barcelona heavily as they worked to turn around an early two-goal deficit and coming up just short. Yet the La Liga giants enter this match with a much cleaner bill of health than two weeks prior, and they are still considered heavy favorites to bag another three points.
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Shakhtar Donetsk vs Barcelona match facts
Date: Tuesday, November 7, 2023Kickoff Time: 8 p.m. local (3 p.m. ET / 12 p.m. PT)Location: Volksparkstadion (Hamburg, Germany)Official: Irfan Peljto (BIH)Last meeting: Barcelona 2-1 Shakhtar Donetsk (Oct. 25, 2023 | UEFA Champions League)
Shakhtar Donetsk play their home Champions League matches in Hamburg for the time being due to the ongoing war in Ukraine. Their true home ground of Donbass Arena has not been used by the club since 2014 due to hostilities in the area — they played their home domestic matches in Kyiv, and held European home games abroad in Warsaw, Poland last year before moving to play in Germany this year.
Shakhtar Donetsk vs Barcelona prediction, odds
Moneyline lean: Barcelona (-380)Score prediction: Shakhtar Donetsk 1-3 Barcelona
While Shakhtar turned heads in the reverse fixture between these clubs two weeks ago in Spain, that Barcelona team was missing a number of key players. This time, with a far more full-strength Barcelona squad at Xavi’s disposal, it is tough to see Shakhtar finding room to repeat their second-half turnaround.
Shakhtar
win Draw Barca
win Both teams
to score Y / N Over / Under
3.5 goals BAR
-1.5 SHK
+1.5 DraftKings
(USA) +850 +600 -380 -110 / -110 +110 / -145 -145 +105
Shakhtar Donetsk vs Barcelona: best bet
Pick: Both teams to score — YESOdds: -110 (DraftKings)
Shakhtar Donetsk are one of the most chaotic teams in the Champions League this season, with their gung-ho approach on full display across the full 90 minutes in Barcelona two weeks ago. Both teams could have finished the game with more final product than they put forth in the 2-1 Barca win.
That doesn’t necessarily mean that this game will be bursting with goals, as Barcelona sport a much healthier squad than they for that game had two weeks prior, but most of their reinforcements come in the way of the attacking unit, with Robert Lewandowski and Raphinha amongst those who should return to the starting lineup.
While Barcelona have one of the best defences in Europe, Shakhtar’s ability to cause havoc and get opponents out of position caused problems two weeks ago, and should create more issues here, even if Barca run away with the match.
Shakhtar Donetsk vs Barcelona prop bet
Pick: Shakhtar Donetsk over 2.5 total cardsOdds: +118 (FanDuel)
Thanks to their chaotic style of play, Shakhtar are prone to persistent fouling as they look to create problems by pressuring opponents in various areas of the pitch. They have eclipsed this total in each of their first three Champions League matches, and did so in their 1-0 victory at Dynamo Kyiv over the weekend as well.
Shakhtar are among the top 10 sides for both fouls conceded and yellow cards in the Champions League so far, while Bosnian referee Irfan Peljto has not been afraid to go to his pocket, showing at least one team three cards in both his Champions League matches this season (Union Berlin versus Napoli and Celtic’s game at Feyenoord).
The over on the game total is at 4.5 bookings, and that’s a juicy total as well at +106, as Barcelona have been shaky with their discipline as well across European games this season, but with the slightly better return and more reliable play, this is a better selection.
Shakhtar Donetsk vs Barcelona live stream, TV channel
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