Panathinaikos vs Shakhtar Donetsk: Who will gain the upper hand in the first leg?
In the opening clash of the UEFA Europa League third qualifying round, Panathinaikos will host Shakhtar Donetsk on their home turf. The match is set for Thursday, August 7, at 20:00 Central European Time. Here’s our betting preview for this encounter.
Panathinaikos vs Shakhtar Donetsk: match preview
Greek side Panathinaikos kicked off their European campaign in the UEFA Champions League qualifiers. They faced Scottish giants Rangers and were unable to put up a real fight. Panathinaikos lost the first leg 0-2, then managed only a 1-1 draw in the return fixture. As a result, the team’s Champions League journey ended quickly, and now they’re fighting for a place in the Europa League group stage. With the new Greek Super League season not starting until August 23, Panathinaikos are fully focused on this showdown with Shakhtar.
Shakhtar Donetsk began their Europa League journey from the very first qualifying round and have played through the entire process. In the opening round, the Ukrainian club thrashed Finnish side Ilves — a commanding 6-0 win followed by a goalless draw. In the second round, Shakhtar faced a tougher test against Besiktas but managed to overcome the Turkish club with an aggregate score of 6-2. Shakhtar have also already kicked off their Ukrainian Premier League campaign, edging out a 1-0 victory in the opening round.
Match facts and head-to-heads
- Panathinaikos have won just one of their last five matches.
- Shakhtar Donetsk are on a three-match winning streak and have suffered just one defeat in their last five games.
- Panathinaikos have conceded at least one goal in four consecutive matches, while Shakhtar have scored in each of their last three outings.
- These teams have never faced each other before.
Probable line-ups
- Panathinaikos: Dragowski, Kotsiras, Palmer-Brown, Kyriakopoulos, Tuba, Djuricic, Kyriella, Maksimovic, Bakasetas, Ioannidis, Pellistri
- Shakhtar Donetsk: Riznyk, Matviyenko, Vinicius Tobias, Pedrinho, Bondar, Ocheretko, Marlon Gomes, Kevin, Pedrinho, Kauan Elias, Alisson
Prediction
Shakhtar are a side known for their attacking flair, consistently finding the net in recent matches. Panathinaikos, playing at home, traditionally deliver solid results on their own ground, but they’ve failed to keep a clean sheet in four straight games. My pick: both teams to score, odds 1.6.
