Tournament | Champions League |
Timetable | 17:45 GMT, 28th Nov 2023 |
Prediction | Shakhtar Donetsk to Win! |
Odds | 1.91 |
Bookmaker | betway |
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Shakhtar’s stunning 1-0 win over Barcelona kept their hopes of qualifying for the Champions League round of 16 alive, and a victory at home to Group H whipping boys Antwerp could even put them in pole position to finish in the top two. As for the Belgians (who are competing in Europe’s top competition for the first time since 1957/58), they’ve already been eliminated after four games, while they’ll realistically need to beat Shakhtar by two goals or more to stand any chance of qualifying for the Europa League. But will Shakhtar win here, and how are the best betting sites pricing a shock Antwerp victory?
🏆 Shakhtar Donetsk v Royal Antwerp UCL Prediction
Unsurprisingly, the gameweek two clash between Shakhtar and Antwerp was the first time these two sides had ever met in UEFA competition, and they managed to serve up a classic at the Bosuilstadion. Here, Antwerp stormed into a 2-0 lead after 34 minutes, only for a Danylo Sikan brace and Yaroslav Rakitskyi strike to complete a remarkable second-half turnaround for the Ukrainians and secure a 3-22 triumph.
Despite their promising showing in the first 40 minutes against Shakhtar, the defending Pro League champions have largely performed poorly in the Champions League, ranking among the bottom three teams for total shots on target (10), shot-creating actions per 90 (14.00) and goals scored (three). Along with Benfica, they remain the only side without a point during the group stages too, while no participant has conceded more than their 14 goals.
For their part, Shakhtar have completed 2.75 goals-creating actions per 90, with this more than double Antwerp’s tally of 1.25. They also boast one of the tournament’s top scorers in the dangerous Danylo Sikan, who followed up his double in Belgium with the winner against Barca at the Volksparkstadion in gameweek four.
Despite a recent wobble in form, Shakhtar are typically strong and tough to beat at home, while Antwerp are incredibly limited in this level and already unable to qualify for the round of 16. So, even though I expect the away side to score in Hamburg, I’m predicting another Shakhtar win here!
My Prediction: 🏆 Shakhtar Donetsk 2 – 1 Royal Antwerp ⚽
💯 Shakhtar Donetsk v Royal Antwerp UCL Match Odds
Whether you want to back the match winner or result here or explore other markets such as BTTS or the over/under on total goals scored, you’ll be able to place several different wagers ahead of the Shakhtar vs Antwerp match. When navigating the sportsbooks covered by Betinireland’s detailed bookmaker reviews, you’ll unlock the most competitive odds too!
🏅 Shakhtar Donetsk v Royal Antwerp: Match Winner
Royal Antwerp are priced at around 4.00 to defeat Shakhtar, with these odds implying a 25.00% probability of the Belgians recording their first win of the UCL campaign. Conversely, Shakhtar’s average price of 1.91 implies a 53.35% probability of a home win, so it’s clear who the bookies think will win in Hamburg!
Team | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Shakhtar Donetsk to Win | 1.87 | 1.91 | 1.86 | 1.91 | 1.87 |
Royal Antwerp to Win | 3.75 | 3.60 | 3.75 | 4.00 | 3.80 |
Draw | 3.60 | 3.60 | 3.65 | 3.50 | 3.60 |
⚽ Shakhtar Donetsk v Royal Antwerp: Both Teams To Score
Both competing sides have scored in 11 of 18 Shakhtar’s matches this season, including three out of four (75%) of their Champions League games. As for Antwerp, 50% of their matches (11 out of 22) in 2023/24 have seen both sides find the back of the net, with the Belgians keeping eight clean sheets in total. Unsurprisingly, however, none of these have been achieved in the UCL.
Yes/No | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Yes | 1.67 | 1.70 | 1.66 | 1.73 | 1.67 |
No | 2.05 | 2.10 | 2.10 | 2.05 | 2.10 |
🥅 Shakhtar Donetsk v Royal Antwerp: Over/Under 2.5 Goals
Between them, Shakhtar and Antwerp have played 40 matches in all competitions this season, including the latter’s two-legged play-off round to secure qualification for the Champions League proper. These matches have yielded 122 goals at a rate of 3.05 per game, while both sides have conceded at a rate of more than 1.00 goal per game during the season.
Under/Over | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Over 2.5 Goals | 1.75 | 1.75 | 1.75 | 1.80 | 1.80 |
Under 2.5 Goals | 1.95 | 1.95 | 1.94 | 1.95 | 1.91 |
✔️ Shakhtar Donetsk v Royal Antwerp - Betting Tips
There are several strategies you can deploy when wagering on football, including matched betting (which sees you lay a traditional back bet and simultaneously back two different outcomes). However, this isn’t necessarily recommended when betting on match with a short price favourite, so here are some alternative tips when wagering on Shakhtar vs Antwerp.
- Tip 1: Back Shakhtar to Win With Over 2.5 Goals: There’s little value in backing Shakhtar to win outright, but you can create more competitive odds by betting on the home side to triumph with over 2.5 goals scored in the game. You can get on this at a price of 2.90 with Dachbet Sports, while it creates genuine value given that the matches contested by both teams in 2023/24 have produced an average of 3.05 goals per game.
- Tip 2: Back Shakhtar to Win 2-1: If you have one or more free bets on your account, you may also want to consider unlocking higher returns through correct score betting. Of course, this incurs a higher level of risk, but you can back Shakhtar to win 2-1 at the competitive price of 8.00 with Betway. This season’s goal and performance stats suggest that this is the most likely score, even though the odds imply just a 12.5% probability of this outcome occurring.
- Tip 3: Back Shakhtar to Win by One Goal: Shakhtar and Antwerp have conceded 1.11 and 1.45 goals per game respectively in 2023/24, so both sides continue to showcase defensive vulnerability. There’s also a great deal at stake in Hamburg (especially for the home side), and these factors should contribute to a tight and nervy UCL encounter. So, I think there’s value in backing Shakhtar to win narrowly and by the odd goal at a price of 3.60 with TonyBet Sports.
1️⃣ Shakhtar Donetsk Update
Despite their rousing 1-0 win over Barcelona in gameweek four, Shakhtar have endured a tough run of form domestically of late. This has seen the side win just two of their previous five Ukrainian Premier League games, while home defeats against Vorskla Poltava and Dnipro-1 have seen them slump to fourth in the table. While their home form at the Volksparkstadion in Hamburg has been patchy all season (they also lost to Porto in gameweek one), they produced a superbly disciplined performance against the Catalans to remain competitive in this season’s Champions League, and will surely deliver on their status as favourites against Antwerp if they achieve a similar level.
Last 5 Games | |
---|---|
Shakhtar Dontesk 1 Dnipro-1 3 | 12.11.23 Ukrainian Premier League |
Shakhtar Donetsk 1 Barcelona 0 | 07.11.23 Champions League |
Dynamo Kyiv 0 Shakhtar Donetsk 1 | 03.11.23 Ukrainian Premier League |
FC Victoria Mykolaivka 0 Shakhtar Donetsk 3 | 30.10.23 Ukrainian Cup |
Barcelona 2 Shakhtar Donetsk 1 | 25.10.23 Champions League |
Shakhtar remain without the services of left winger Ivan Petryak, who will miss the visit of Antwerp due to a longstanding ankle injury. Forward Lassina Traoré has also been ruled out until December with a tendon tear, while midfielder Artem Bondarenko remains a doubt with an unknown injury issue too.
Player | Reason |
---|---|
Ivan Petryak | Ankle Injury |
Lassina Traoré | Tendon Tear |
Artem Bondarenko | Unknown Injury |
2️⃣ Royal Antwerp Update
Antwerp have endured an incredibly difficult 2023/24 campaign both at home and abroad, winning just nine of their 22 matches (40.91%) and losing seven games across all competitions so far. The side have only won three of their last eight matches in the Belgian Pro League, leaving them languishing in fifth place and 11 points behind Union SG in defence of their title. The UCL group stages have also brought four successive defeats, which have seen Antwerp ship a tournament high 14 goals and score just three. The team also has yet to score on the road in the Champions League, losing 5-0 at Barca and 2-0 at Porto in gameweeks one and four respectively.
Last 5 Games | |
---|---|
Royal Antwerp 6 Standard Liege 0 | 11.11.23 Belgian Pro League |
Porto 2 Royal Antwerp 0 | 07.11.23 Champions League |
Royal Antwerp 3 Genk 2 | 04.11.23 Belgian Pro League |
Lierse K. 1 Royal Antwerp 4 | 01.11.23 Belgian Cup |
Club Brugge 2 Royal Antwerp 1 | 29.10.23 Belgian Pro League |
21-year-old left back Sam Vines remains a doubt for the trip to Hamburg with a knock, while Jacob Ondrejka is also recovering from a bone fracture. Defensive midfielder Mandela Keita has also been ruled out with a knee injury, while winger Anthony Valencia incurred a fracture of his fibula shaft on October 25th and will miss out too. Jurgen Ekkelenkamp is also unavailable after being sent off in the 2-0 defeat at Porto last time out.
Player | Reason |
---|---|
Sam Vines | Knock |
Jacob Ondrejka | Bone Fracture |
Mandela Keita | Knee Injury |
Anthony Valencia | Fracture of Fibula Shaft |
Jurgen Ekkelenkamp | Suspended |
👕 Shakhtar Donetsk v Royal Antwerp - Potential Lineups
Pos. | Shakhtar Donetsk 4-3-3 | Royal Antwerp 4-2-3-1 | Pos. |
---|---|---|---|
Goalkeeper | D. Riznyk | S. Lammens | Goalkeeper |
Right Back | G. Gocholeishvili | R. De Laet | Right Back |
Centre Back | V. Bondar | Z. Van Den Bosch | Centre Back |
Centre Back | Y. Rakitskyi | S. Coulibaly | Centre Back |
Left Back | M. Matviyenko | O. Wijndal | Left Back |
Midfielder | T. Stepanenko | A. Yusuf | Midfielder |
Midfielder | D. Kryskiv | A. Vermeeren | Midfielder |
Midfielder | H. Sudakov | V. Janssen | Midfielder |
Wide Forward | O. Zubkov | G. Kerk | Wide Forward |
Striker | D. Sikan | G. Ilenikhena | Striker |
Wide Forward | Newerton | M. Balikwisha | Wide Forward |
✒️ Lewis Humphries – Expert Tipster
Lewis Humphries is an experienced football writer and tipster from the UK. He writes regularly about the Champions League, Premier League, Serie A and other competitions, regularly delivering expert match predictions and betting insights. He also successfully predicted the winner of the 2022 FIFA World Cup, while accurately forecasting the outcome of several group stage and knockout games.