FCBARCELONA.CAT

09.12.2008 10:36

Barça-Shakhtar Donetsk: Did you know that…

Roger Bogunyà

Barça and Shakhtar are going head-to-head this Tuesday in the sixth and last round of Champions League group stage matches. It will be a game full of curious facts and figures even though it is a dead rubber.

- Whatever happens at Camp Nou, Barça will finish first in the group and Shakhtar third.

- The Ukrainian outfit has never won away in Spain. Their best result was a two-all draw at Seville, even though a goal in extra time was enough to knock them out of the UEFA Cup.

- Josep Guardiola played against a side from the Ukraine, but it wasn’t Shakhtar. Barça’s manager turned out in four games against Dynamo Kiev, winning three and losing one. As a coach he has one win from the game played on matchday 2 in the Ukraine this season (1-2).

- So far Valdés, Xavi and Henry have played in all Barça’s Champions League games this season, but that record will come to an end on Tuesday. Along with Alves, Messi, Touré, Puyol and Márquez they will be sitting out the match.

- If Barça score five times, they will reach 700 goals in UEFA competitions.

- Barça has in fact scored the most goals in this season’s Champions League (16), and it is the side which shoots most often (43 times) and the one with the most points (13). It also features one of the tournament’s top goalscorers in Leo Messi who like Frank Lampard has five.

- Shakhtar, by contrast, is the side that commits the most fouls, having racked up 100 in five games.

- Unlike Barça, the Ukrainians had no league game this weekend. Shakhtar finished the first part of its season on 30 November and thus players and coaches were able to come along and watch the Barça-Valencia match at Camp Nou in person.