Shakhtar Donetsk vs Barcelona tips and predictions: Bet on Ukrainians to trouble Barca
Lamine Yamal of FC Barcelona
Barcelona are making a habit of close games this season and tipster Sergiu Baltuta thinks Shaktar Donetsk can run them close in the Champions League.
Barcelona have the chance to take another step towards qualifying for the UEFA Champions League knockout rounds on Tuesday evening in Hamburg.
The Spanish champions are at the top of Group H with a perfect record after three matches, followed by Porto on six points.
Barcelona will travel to face third-placed Shakhtar Donetsk having won their previous meeting against the Ukrainians, with goals from Ferran Torres and Ferrán Jutglà.
Heorhiy Sudukov scored for the Miners and it’s worth noting that five of the eight official games played between the two clubs have been tight.
Suggested bet: Barcelona win and both teams to score
The morale of the team recently taken over by the Croatian Marino Pusic is high, especially after the Friday win, 1-0 away against rivals Dynamo Kyiv.
Besides the 1-2 defeat against Barcelona, Shakhtar started their Champions League campaign with a 1-3 defeat at home against FC Porto.
They then staged a remarkable comeback to win 3-2 against Antwerp, who had led 2-0.
Shakhtar are in fine form in all competitions, having won five of their last six games.
Suggested bet: Over 3.5 goals
The hosts will no doubt try to improve on their modest record in the UCL group stage, where they have only three wins in the last 19 games.
Following a 2-1 home loss to Real Madrid in El Clasico, Xavi's team bounced back quickly with a 1-0 victory over Real Sociedad, thanks to an injury-time goal from Araujo.
It’s interesting to add that Barcelona now has no less than nine consecutive official games with tight results. Each of their seven away games this season had narrow scores.
Suggested bet: Shakhtar Donetsk +2 Asian handicap
