MX23RW : Tuesday, April 23 18:58:40| >> :600:526468:526468:

Match Analysis: Shakhtar Donetsk 2-2 Borussia Dortmund

Sports Mole analyses Shakhtar Donetsk's 2-2 draw with Borussia Dortmund in the last 16 of the Champions League.

German champions Borussia Dortmund travelled to Ukraine to take on Shakhtar Donetsk in the Champions League last-16 this evening and scored two away goals in a 2-2 draw.

Despite Dortmund dominating the opening 25 minutes, it was the hosts who took the lead as Darijo Srna fired in a superb free kick.

Dortmund got level before the break through Robert Lewandowski and in the second half Mats Hummels headed in a corner in the last five minutes to cancel out Douglas Costa's fine individual effort.

Here, Sports Mole analyses whether the result was justified.

Match statistics:

Shakhtar:
Shots 8
On target 5
Possession 49%
Corners 4
Fouls 8

Dortmund:
Shots 15
On target 10
Possession 51%
Corners 6
Fouls 16

Was the result fair?

Just about, although a Dortmund win would have been fair as well. If not for Hummels's late header, Shakhtar might have stolen the win, but the equaliser was no more than the Germans deserved. Andriy Pyatov was the far busier goalkeeper and Dortmund bossed proceedings for long spells.

Shakhtar's performance

They have been far better in the past. Perhaps the loss of Willian affected them, but they were not the usual slickly-oiled passing machine they so frequently are. In attack they tended to run out of ideas and it took two pieces of genius to get their goals: a Srna free kick and a fine effort from Costa.

Dortmund's performance

They were on top for a lot of the game and now must go down as firm favourites for the second leg. Despite a defensive lapse for Shakhtar's second, they were better in most areas of the pitch. In the second half they were not as good as in the first, but they still managed to up the tempo and get the equaliser they deserved.

Sports Mole's man of the match

Jakub Blaszczykowski: The winger somehow had no goals to his name when he was subbed off, but could have had a hat-trick. He was a constant threat down the Dortmund right and even tracked back well. As such, Yaroslav Rakitskiy had no joy in attack for the hosts at wing-back.

Biggest gaffe

There was not a lot done wrong in the game, in truth. However this has to go to the Shakhtar team for their marking from Hummel's headed equaliser. He was given the freedom of the six-yard box to power in the equaliser, which has given his side the upper hand in the tie.

Referee performance

Howard Webb did well enough. There were a couple of occasions for which he was conned by the Shakhtar players going to ground all too easily, and he missed the odd clear foul, but all the major decisions went the right way. He showed just the one fellow card and kept it flowing as much as possible.

What next?

Shakhtar: Shakhtar are still a little over two weeks away from a return to league action and host Volyn at home on March 1, four days before the return Champions League leg.

Dortmund: The Germans are back at home on Saturday to face Eintracht Frankfurt as they look to hold off Bayer Leverkusen having finally got ahead of them in the Bundesliga.

ID:69165: cacheID:69165:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:5236:No Data Analysis info
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Willian scores the equaliser for Shakhtar
Read Next:
Live Commentary: Shakhtar 2-2 Dortmund - as it happened
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS

Group A

TeamPWDLPTS
QBayern651016
QCopenhagen62228
3Galatasaray61235
4Man Utd61144

Group B

TeamPWDLPTS
QArsenal641113
QPSV62319
3Lens62228
4Sevilla60242

Group C

TeamPWDLPTS
QReal Madrid660018
QNapoli631210
3Braga61144
4Union Berlin60242

Group D

TeamPWDLPTS
QReal Sociedad633012
QInter Milan633012
3Benfica61144
4Salzburg61144

Group E

TeamPWDLPTS
QAtletico642014
QLazio631210
3Feyenoord62046
4Celtic61144

Group F

TeamPWDLPTS
QDortmund632111
QPSG62228
3AC Milan62228
4Newcastle61235

Group G

TeamPWDLPTS
QMan City660018
QRB Leipzig640212
3Young Boys61144
4Red Star60151

Group H

TeamPWDLPTS
QBarcelona640212
QPorto640212
3Shakhtar63039
4Antwerp61053


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!