🕟 Kick Off: 20:00 BST

📍 Location: Emirates Stadium, Islington, North London

📺 UK Broadcaster: Amazon Prime

🙎🏻‍♂️ Referee: Benoit Bastien 🇫🇷

🔴 Arsenal Team News:

• Jurrien Timber is close to a return according to Mikel Arteta.
• Saka missed the Bournemouth game and it is unknown if he will be available for this match.
• It is rumoured that Tomiyasu has picked up a fresh injury following his previous injury which he was recovering from. Will likely miss this game.
• Ødegaard (ankle) and Tierney (thigh) remain absent with longer term injuries.

⚽ Arsenal Form: 🟥🟩🟩🟩🟩

🟠 Shakhtar Donetsk Team News:

• Puzankov is recovering from an ACL injury.

⚽ Shakhtar Donetsk Form: 🟩🟩🟥🟧🟩

⚔️ Head-to-Head:

• Shakhtar Donetsk 2-1 Arsenal (3 November 2010, Champions League)
• Arsenal 5-1 Shakhtar Donetsk (19 October 2010, Champions League)
• Shakhtar Donetsk 3-0 Arsenal (7 November 2000, Champions League)
• Arsenal 3-2 Shakhtar Donetsk (20 September 2000, Champions League)

📖 Match Facts:

• Shakhtar Donetsk have played at Arsenal twice this century, once at Highbury and once at the Emirates. They lost both games.
• Arsenal have played at Shakhtar twice this century. They lost both games.
• Shakhtar Donetsk are yet to win a game in the Champions League this season. They come into this game following a draw at Bologna and a loss to Atalanta.

🎲 Odds (Betway):

• Arsenal – 1/10
• Draw – 9/1
• Shakhtar Donetsk – 20/1

✍🏼 Pre-Match Ramblings

Let’s try that again, shall we?

*ahem*

After a long and miserable international break, Arsenal are finally playing football again. The Gunners return to European action against Ukrainian giant Shakhtar Donetsk, a name that Arsenal fans will be very familiar with following the near miss of one Mykhailo Mudryk nearly joining Arsenal from the Ukrainian champions (thank god that didn’t happen).

Both teams will be coming into this game unhappy with their respective situations. Shakhtar Donetsk sit 4th in the Ukrainian Premier League, 6 points off of leader Dynamo Kyiv, and 27th in the Champions League with just 1 point. We all know Arsenal’s league situation, and I think they will have wanted to be keeping up with the pack in the UCL with 6 points, but a draw at Atalanta made this impossible.

Gooners will be hoping and praying to see Bukayo Saka back in the team, although perhaps not in the starting lineup. Jurrien Timber is also one to watch, and one who’s availability will have massive importance given the absence of William Saliba for the home game against Liverpool at the weekend. I hope that we finally get to see Ethan Nwaneri start a big game. Fans have been clamoring to see the young Englishman step into midfield in the skipper’s absence, but Mikel Arteta has yet to budge, in the big two competitions at least.

I would imagine every Gooner watching this game will be doing so with one and a half eyes on the Liverpool game. Priorities for this game would look something like: Saka’s return, 3 points, no more injuries.