Roberto Lopes in action against SK Celje in the last European game Photo by Darren Kearns
Rovers are back out in European action
SHAMROCK Rovers return to European action on Thursday night in Tallaght Stadium as they take on Shakhtar Donetsk in the UEFA Conference League.
Currently first in the Ukrainian League by four points and sitting in tenth position in the Conference League, Shakhtar are a long way off their former selves of 15 years ago which saw them compete in the Champions League quarter finals.
Shakhtar have also been known for having an extremely strong Brazilian contingent at the club. Over the years this has included the likes of Taison, Willian, Fernandinho, Douglas Costa and Fred.
While they do not have any superstar names on that level anymore they still maintain a healthy number of brazilian players in their team with five in the starting XI for their last Conference league game with a further six on the bench.
Rovers will be coming into this game anxious to get something from it and will be galvanised after their most recent outing in Europe.
An excellent performance in Greece saw them almost defeat AEK Athens, they had to settle for a draw however following a 90th minute penalty awarded to the home side.
The point offers them some reward for their efforts at least and they now sit in 31st place in the table. While this may sound poor the important thing to take note of is that they are only two points behind Dynamo Kiev in the playoff positions.
When their schedule for Europe was revealed several weeks back Rovers would have viewed the last two ties as their most winnable.
Wins against Sparta Prague, AEK Athens and Shakhtar were always going to be lofty ambitions, they will be disappointed with the defeat to SK Celje however, a side they have beaten in recent years.
Their last two games though after Shakhtar, against Icelandic side Breiðablik and Maltese side Hamrun Spartans represent their best chance to get two wins.
A victory against Shakhtar, while unexpected would leave them in a fantastic position for qualifying for a European play off.
Of course there are financial incentives also, should Rovers defeat Shakhtar they will receive a sum of over €400,000 while a draw will net them a little over €130,000.
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