Lech Poznań - Shakhtar Donetsk 1:1

The squad from Donetsk is currently ranked second in the Ukrainian top division and they have recently highlighted their great form with a win against Real Madrid in Champions League, hence the bar was set much higher than in the first sparring match that was scheduled for Thursday against FK Rad Belgrade (0:0). Lech also played against Shakhtar in friendly games in the past two years and the aggregate score so far has been 4:0 for the Ukrainians, therefore the Polish team’s objective was to prove themselves against the undefeated rival. As a result, coach Żuraw decided to send in his first-choice players for the clash with Shakhtar.

Lech’s starting line-up performed well since the opening minutes. Even though Shakhtar remained in possession of the ball for a majority of the time, whenever the team from Poznań got the ball, they made the most out of it. In the 7^th minute, Jakub Kamiński came close to scoring when he dribbled past one of Shakhtar’s defenders just outside the box and fired a flat shot directed at the bottom corner, however, his attempt was slightly off target. 8 minutes later, Norbert Pacławski who had just appeared on the pitch in place on injured Mikael Ishak, caused problems to Shakhtar’s defensive line with his header. Lech’s homegrown player deserves special recognition as he had already played full 90 minutes in the sparring match against FK Rad just half an hour before and still managed to be very active and create goal-scoring chances. The Ukrainian side also had an opportunity to change the score but Tete’s shot from the first half flew above the crossbar. Both teams looked well in the first part of the game and played attractive football but failed to find a way to beat their opponent.

The second half was delayed due to a power outage at the stadium. Fortunately, the venue staff intervened quickly and the two sides were able to resume the match. Moreover, Mohammed Awwad reappeared on the pitch in the second half despite already playing against FK Rad earlier that day. Due to Ishak’s injury, Lech needed an additional forward to waiting in the wings, hence the Israeli was called in and asked to replace Pacławski on the pitch. However, it was Awwad who helped Lech take the lead but another striker – Filip Marchwiński. In the 58th minute, the youngster received a good pass from Alan Czerwiński in the penalty area and beat Shakhtar’s keeper with a strong and precise shot.

Just a few minutes later, the team from Poznań had a great chance to change the score again, but Awwad’s attempt from outside the box was successfully stopped by the goalkeeper. He was also forced to intervene when Kamiński sent an accurate cross into Shakhtar’s penalty area, however, once again he made no mistake. The Ukrainian team looked for opportunities to counterattack but both, Lech’s flanks and the goal were being guarded cautiously by the players from Poznań. Mickey van der Hart was forced to intervene a few times, for instance when Viktor Kovalenko converted a free kick into a shot on target, but the Dutch was playing a great game. Just when it seemed that Lech would add the first win against Shakhtar to their statistics, the referee awarded the team from Ukraine a penalty kick following Bartosz Salamon’s foul on Fernando. Kovalenko successfully converted the set piece into an equalizer.

Lech Poznań - Shakhtar Donetsk 1:1 (0:0)

Goals: Filip Marchwiński (58.) - Viktor Kovalenko (90.+1)

Lech: Mickey van der Hart - Alan Czerwiński, Lubomir Šatka (67. Tomasz Dejewski), Bartosz Salamon, Tymoteusz Puchacz - Jesper Karlström, Pedro Tiba - Michał Skóraś, Filip Marchwiński, Jakub Kamiński - Mikael Ishak (13. Norbert Pacławski, 46. Mohammad Awwad).

Shakhtar (starting line-up): Anatoliy Trubin - Cipriano, Mykola Matvienko, Valeriy Bondar, Sergiy Bolbat - Alan Patrick, Georgiy Sudakov, Maycon, Marquinhos, Yevgen Konoplyanka - Tete Junior Moraes