Barça have been in great form so far this season, despite the lengthy injury list. They remain unbeaten in La Liga and are currently in the driver's seat in their champions league group with 2 wins out of 2, 6 goals scored and none conceded. Their latest win, a 1-0 triumph in La Liga over Athletic Club, was a testy one, but the catalans showed that they can still win regardless of who's absent. Barcelona are holding all the cards for top spot in group H in the champions league and will look to strengthen their position for qualification as they welcome the champions of Ukraine.
Shakhtar Donetsk have had a decent start to the new season as they get used to their new surroundings based in Hamburg. Their first UCL game ended in a home defeat to Porto and they just recently replaced their manager Van Leeuwen with caretaker Darijo Srna and now with former Feyenoord coaching assistant Marino Pusic. They were able to scrap a 3-2 win at Antwerp on MD2, but they'll understand the difficulty of the job at hand and will have to be at the best level to get a positive result.
INTERESTING STATS
- Barcelona have been unbeaten in the 2023/24 season. They have won nine and drawn three out of their 12 games.
- Shakhtar Donetsk have been on a three-match winning streak and they will look to make it four in a row.
-The Catalan giants have won both their opening games in the UEFA Champions League this season.
-The visitors have conceded five goals but have scored four so far in the UEFA Champions League.
- Barcelona have only lost three of their last 41 home games in the group stage of the UEFA Champions League (W32 D6).
Last 5 meetings
1/10/08 (G.S) Shakhtar 1-2 Barça
9/12/08 (G.S) Barça 2-3 Shakhtar
28/8/09 (Supercup) Barça 1-0 Shakhtar
7/4/11(QF) Barça 5-1 Shakhtar
13/4/11 (QF) Shakhtar 0-1 Barça
TEAM NEWS
Barcelona
The home team will be without the services of Sergi Roberto, Jules Kounde, Frenkie de Jong, Pedri, Raphinha and Robert Lewandowski.
Marc Andre TerStegen will return to the post. Iñigo Martinez made a great case for himself against Athletic Club and will likely return to the lineup alongside Ronald Araujo. João Cancelo and Alejandro Balde round up the defense.
Gavi got a red card against Porto and is suspended for this game. This means Alex Garrido and Marc Casadó have a good chance of being featured in this game. Romeu, Gündoğan and Lopez look set to start.
17-year-old Marc Guiu, who scored the winner 34 seconds into his debut, has been added to the UCL squad and may get some minutes here. João Felix, Ferran Torres and Lamine Yamal will likely form the starting attack line.he ball and dictate the pace of the game.
Shakhtar Donetsk
The visitors will be without the services of Stav Lemkin. Lassina Traoré sustained a ligament injury and will be out for an extended period. Everyone else is expected to be fit for this fixture.
Dmytro Riznyk will be in goal. The back four will consist of Yukhym Konoplya, Valeriy Bondar, Yaroslav Rakitskyi and Irakli Azarovi.
Taras Stepanenko, Dmytro Kryskiv and Yehor Nazaryna will form the midfield. Oleksandr Zubkov and Heorhiy Sudakov will support 22-year-old striker Danylo Sikan in attack.
What time does Barcelona vs Shakhtar Donetsk kick-off?
Location: Barcelona
Stadium: Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys
Date: Wednesday 25 October
Kick-off Time: 17:45 BST / 12:45 ET / 09:45 PT
Referee: Ivan Kruzliak (SVK)
VAR: Tomasz Kwiatkowski (POL)
Just like last season, Barcelona are riddled with injuries at a crucial moment. But they're in a better position this time, and should be able to get a win over the Ukrainian champions and edge closer to qualification.