The faith of a people leads Shakhtar to the round of 16
Shakhtar take the last place in the round of 16 after a sensational penalty shootout by Trubin (he saved three shots) and an exercise in effort and self-improvement. They were worse in the match, but they never gave up before being overwhelmed by Rennes in extra time.
That Shakhtar is in the round of 16 is a feat, it is one of those magical things that football has and where anything can happen. A team that, on average, is barely over twenty years old, that has played two official matches in recent months and that is in the round of 16 in the second European competition is a feat.
The game was a bad time for Shakhtar from the start with a shot at Rennes looking to equalize the tie as soon as possible and that made the game very dizzy from the start. Trubin, hero of the night along with Kelsy, kept his team in the first half with merit saves. The VAR annulled Traoré’s goal, which silenced Roazhon Parkbut Bondarenko’s previous hand was clear.
The second half began with the same arguments as the first and at 51′ Ekambi equalized with a great collective move turning the game from right to left for Rennes. The second half had some twists and turns, but the fear of taking risks and running out of prizes was apparent after 70′.
In the extension, Shakhtar was very stiff and in Doku’s first race he overtook Mykhaylichenko for speed and Salah, entering the second half, gave the virtual pass. However, Shakhtar did not undo and in the last almost of the game a simple center to catch it Mandanda was cleared badly by Belocian and slipped into the net.
In the penalty shootout, Trubin emerged who saved the second and third for Rennes. However, the Ukrainian team lost all their income by missing the two matchballs they had. However, Shakhtar did not decline again and ended up winning the match with a goal from Kelsy, a 19-year-old Venezuelan who is making his debut today. Football is wonderful and cruel, it has been with Rennes. But today the Ukrainian people will have a Shakhtar joy when a year has already passed since the start of the war with Russia.