The UEFA Cup winners meet Europe's best side in Monaco...
Kick-off: Friday, August 28, 20:45 CET
Stade Louis II, Monaco
Monaco is a favoured location for UEFA events. They hold their draws there, give out prizes there. And, once a year, the most modest of their club competitions comes here, too: the European Super Cup.
The Stade Louis II plays host to a match that, like Monaco itself, is more about style than substance. It is a branding exercise: a glitzy match in front of the jet set, or at least some of them.
But make no mistake: for the clubs involved it is not simply a formality. Granted, it pales in comparison to the domestic club campaign, but to start the season off right with silverware is everyone's goal.
Blue, Red, And Silver All Over
Barcelona already have a cup this season, of course. Adding to their unprecedented treble of 2008-09 is the Spanish Super Cup, hoisted aloft at Camp Nou last week as Athletic Bilbao were brushed aside.
Barca have changed little as a squad since their Champions League win in Rome back in the spring, but what few alterations there have been are considerable. It's a case of quality over quantity: Zlatan Ibrahimovic has come in up front to replace Samuel Eto'o in a move that not all are convinced by - can the Swede turn it on at European level? - while Maxwell arrives at left-back to compete with Eric Abidal.
A few other signings - not least Dmytry Chygrinsky, ex-Shakhtar - and no real departures other than that of Eto'o lend credence to the idea that Pep Guardiola's side are going for all awards yet again.
Orange Crush
Shakhtar, UEFA Cup winners last season, have a few more distractions than even Barca.
Mircea Lucescu's outfit were eliminated from the Champions League by Timisoara, but are flying high in the new Ukrainian season and sailed past Sivasspor in the Europa League to boot.
That gives them a real chance of defending their continental trophy, but a club of Shakhtar's size needs CL football.
With that in mind, an unbeaten, high-scoring start to the domestic season is exactly what the fans expect, but with both a cup match against Dynamo Kyiv and the Barca clash coming up soon, not least tough ties against Metalist and Dnipro in the league, it's far from simple for the Miners.
FORM GUIDE
Barcelona
August 23 v Athletic Bilbao (H) - WON 3-0 (SUPER CUP)
August 19 v Manchester City (H) - LOST 1-0 (FRIENDLY)
August 16 v Athletic Bilbao (A) - WON 2-1 (SUPER CUP)
August 8 v Chivas Guadalajara (A) - DREW 1-1 (FRIENDLY)
August 6 v Seattle Sounders (A) - WON 4-0 (FRIENDLY)
Shakhtar Donetsk
August 25 v Sivasspor (H) - WON 2-0 (EL)
August 20 v Sivasspor (A) - WON 3-0 (EL)
August 15 v Dniester Ovidiopol (A) - WON 6-1 (LEAGUE)
August 9 v Metalurg Donetsk (H) - WON 4-1 (LEAGUE)
August 5 v Timisoara (A) - DREW 0-0 (CL)
TEAM NEWS
Barcelona
Coach Pep Guardiola has taken the entire senior squad, along with four youth players, to Monaco. There is as yet little indication as to his starting line-up, but expect a strong eleven, with younsters such as Jeffren likely to come off the bench. The man himself said to the CP, "Of course we will field a strong team. Victory is never guaranteed."
Possible Starting XI: Valdes; Dani Alves, Puyol, Pique, Maxwell; Xavi, Yaya Toure, Iniesta; Messi, Ibrahimovic, Henry.
Shakhtar Donetsk
Surprisingly, Dmytro Chygrinsky will take part at centre-back for the boys in orange before joining up with the Blaugrana. Coach Mircea Lucescu confirmed as much in a press conference - also stating that he expects other Miners to make the step up to bigger clubs. Lucescu has brought a full squad of 28 to Monaco.
Possible Starting XI: Pyatov; Srna, Kucher, Chygrinsky, Shevchuk; Duljaj, Lewandowski; Ilsinho, Jadson, Willian; Luiz Adriano.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Barcelona - Zlatan Ibrahimovic: The big-money buy himself has much to prove at a European level to his doubters, and there is no time like the present. The onus is on 'Ibra' to find his predatory instinct early and often.
Shakhtar Donetsk - Darijo Srna: The club captain and Croatian ace is one of the players coach Lucescu expects to move on one day. Barcelona have seen the versatile right-back as a potential target in the past - could he haunt them on Friday?
PREDICTION
Barcelona are distracted by a high-profile league opener on Monday, but they are in a competitive winning habit after the Recopa and should have too much for a Shakhtar side with a great deal on their plate.
Barcelona 3-1 Shakhtar Donetsk
No comments:
Post a Comment