MX23RW : Friday, October 26 14:20:43

Paulo Fonseca wary of Manchester City threat

Paulo Fonseca wary of Manchester City threat
© Offside
Shakhtar beat the Premier League champions last season.

Shakhtar Donetsk coach Paulo Fonseca has warned there are no weak links in the Manchester City side.

The Ukrainian champions host Pep Guardiola’s men in the Champions League for the second time in 10 months on Tuesday.

Shakhtar beat City in their adoptive home of Kharkiv last December but, with that game being a dead rubber for the Premier League outfit, the circumstances could be different this time.

Fonseca said: “They are even better, they have some new players and are stronger now while we are a different team.

“We will need to pay attention to all the players in the City team. They are very strong players and any of them can give us problems.

“We know it is going to be difficult and we will probably have to suffer a bit without the ball, but we will try to find ways to play our game and attack.

“We have younger players (than last year) and for them it is a big chance to play in such a great competition. We are totally thinking about our game and how we will play.

“Our principles remain the same, no matter who we play against. It doesn’t matter who we are playing against – Manchester City or any other team.”

Shakhtar are without two of their most influential players in midfielders Taison and Marlos but Fonseca will not modify his approach.

The Portuguese, whose success with Shakhtar has seen him linked with West Ham and Everton in the past year, said: “We are not going to change anything, although they are probably the most important players in our team.

“I’ll stick to the same pattern I have at Shakhtar since the beginning.”


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Tables
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Shakhtar DonetskShakhtar1210113162531
2Dynamo Kiev129211541129
3FC OleksandriyaOleksandriya128131811725
4Vorskla PoltavaVorskla126061114-318
5MariupolMariupol125251619-317
6Olimpik DonetskOlimpik Donetsk124351518-315
7Zorya LuhanskLuhansk123541412214
8FC LvivLviv123541113-214
9Desna ChernihivDesna124171217-513
10Karpaty LvivKarpaty122461220-810
11Chornomorets OdesaChornomorets12237916-79
12Arsenal Kyiv12219721-147

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