After pulling off a shock win over Dutch powerhouse Ajax, Austrian side Rapid Wien will hope to do the same against Ukrainian outfit Shakhtar Donetsk as they seek their first ever Champions League group stage qualification since the 2005/2006 campaign.
During their debut appearance in the 2005/2006 edition, die Grün-Weißen were given a harsh dose of reality of competition on European club football's biggest stage. Grouped with Bayern Munich, Juventus, and Belgian side Club Brugge, they lost every single one of their six matches, scoring just three and conceding 15. Meanwhile Shakhtar Donetsk are a team quite familiar with European competition, as they are the first club in Ukraine to have won the UEFA Cup (now known as the Europa League) back in 2009.
Additionally, the team, known as the Miners, have never missed a Champions League group stage campaign since the 2009/2010 season, when they were unable to find a way past Romainian outfit Timişoara. This past summer has seen several faces depart Shakhtar Donetsk, but only one will be playing Champions League football this season. Douglas Costa departed for Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich in a deal worth €30 million. Meanwhile, his Brazilian colleagues Fernando and Luiz Adriano will be trying their luck in Serie A with Sampdoria and AC Milan, but will have to contend with just league play as the Blucerchiati were dumped out of the Europa League earlier this summer and the Rossoneri were unable to even qualify for any European football after another poor showing last season.
However, although the odds look somewhat in favor of the visitors, Rapid Wien are a team that have enjoyed good results against teams from that country. Since losing to fellow Ukrainian big side Dynamo Kyiv, a bitter rival of Shakhtar by a score-line of 4-1 during the quarter-finals of the now defunct 1985/1986 European Cup Winners' Cup, the hosts have yet to lose to Ukrainian opposition at home.
And Shakhtar do not have good memory of visits to Austria. During the 2002/2003 UEFA Cup, they were thrashed by Austria Wien 5-1 and under current coach Mircea Lucescu were frustrated following a 1-0 loss to FC Salzburg during the 2006/2007 edition of the Champions League, meaning that they have yet to win a game on the road in Austria. They will be coming into this game after defeating Fenerbahçe 3-0 on aggregate in their own qualifying round, but recently lost to Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk 2-0 in their most recent league fixture on August 14th.
Tonight's game will be the first ever meeting in the Champions League between these two sides, meaning that anything really can happen as Rapid Wien take on Shakhtar Donetsk in what should be an interesting clash in Austria's capital this evening.
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