UEFA Champions League Playoffs: Monaco vs. Shakhtar Preview, Odds, Prediction

Monaco and Shakhtar Donetsk face in the UEFA Champions League playoffs at Stade Louis II in Monte Carlo this Tuesday. The home team didn’t make a good intro for this clash, losing this weekend, while on the other side, Shakhtar is coming to France following a victory, however, a not-so-convincing one. This will be an open battle between two sides who like to attack and pressure the rival. The Ukrainian team is in the competitive mode significantly longer than their counterparts, but on the other side, in this particular situation, Monaco has a home-field advantage.

Preview

Monaco (-160) wasn’t looking good at all against Lorient. They lost 1-0, despite having 72% of the ball possession and several excellent chances. Yet, the offensive line couldn’t breach the rival’s defense, and Les Monégasques went home beaten in the end.

It seems that Golovin’s current health had taken a toll on Monaco’s efficiency, with the Russian being the creative spark in their midfield. He isn’t 100% ready, and that has a big impact on the overall performance of the French side. This player has enormous talent, but for some unknown reasons, he didn’t develop into a superstar.

In both competitive games Monaco played at home, we saw goals on both sides, while overall, including the preseason, six of nine of their matches ended like that. We need to add, that Les Monégasques had tough friendly matches, against teams like Wolfsburg, Antwerp, Real Sociedad, Salzburg, etc.

Shakthar (+375) beat Metalist 1925 on Friday, 2-0, but they didn’t show some particularly amazing performance in that clash. Instead of breaking a much weaker rival early on, the team from Donetsk played a bit sluggish in the opening 45 minutes, having to solve the match in the second half.

This was the first competitive game this season in which Shakhtar played not to end with three or more goals. The Miners’ trademark is high-paced football, in which offense takes the central spot. Regardless of the opponent across the field, the Ukrainians are always trying to score.

We’ve seen that on numerous occasions in the previous year, with them defeating Real Madrid in both matches, primarily because of a good attack.

Latest News

Golovin probably won’t start on Tuesday, and that is once again a big blow for the French sides. Meanwhile, apart from the Russian, Benjamin Lecomte is out for sure, as well as the defender Benoit Badiashile.

On the other side, Roberto de Zerbi can’t count on Valeriy Bondar and Malyshev.

Head to Head

Monaco and Shakhtar played in the UEFA Cup 42 years ago, with the French team having more success. They would lose the first match in SSSR, 2-1, but win the second leg at home, 2-0. Also, six years ago, these teams met in a friendly international in which Shakhtar rolled over the rivals, 3-0.

Prediction

We don’t want to waste too much of your time here, but be very precise. The most logical solution is to bet on Over 2.5 goals, because both teams like to attack. Furthermore, add both teams to score to that, with the odds for that pick at +115. It is, in our opinion, the best bet of the day.

Pick: Over 2.5 goals and both teams to score +115

 

Here is the preview for more UEFA Champions League games:

Benfica vs. PSV

Here is also a preview for the Europa League game between Celtic and AZ Alkmaar.