Alex Teixeira scored twice as Shakhtar Donetsk beat Real Sociedad 2-0 on the opening night of the Champions League group stages.
Both sides had good opportunities to open the scoring in the early stages, with Sociedad's Antoine Girezmann testing Andriy Pyatov before Fernando saw an effort well blocked by Claudio Bravo.
The Spanish side looked the more dangerous team in the first half but Carlos Vela twice wasted good chances with wayward shots.
Shakhtar were impressive in possession but struggled to create clear opportunities before the interval arrived.
The hosts improved after the break and were beginning to threaten on a more regular basis, with Teixeira curling an effort just wide following a quick counter attack.
Shakhtar didn't take too much longer to find the opening goal, with Douglas Costa picking out Teixeira to give the Brazilian the perfect opportunity to break the deadlock with an emphatic finish in the 65th minute.
Imanol Agirrexte was inches away from equalising for the hosts when he headed the ball against the crossbar in the 80th minute.
Fernando could have added a second later on but his weak effort was saved by Bravo.
However, Teixeira did manage to seal an impressive victory with a drilled shot from the edge of the area in the 87th minute.
Callum Mulvihill
