Poltissya secured a surprise 2-0 victory over Shakhtar Donetsk in the Ukrainian Premier League's fourth round on Friday evening. The result leaves the visitors in sixth place with six points from three matches, while the hosts remain top of the table with nine points after three wins.
The breakthrough came in the 31st minute when Oleksandr Nazarenko found the net. Shakhtar pushed forward but could not respond before the break, and the visitors doubled their advantage in the 74th minute through Oleksandr Andriyevskyi. And here's the thing — Polissya made the most of the chances they created.
Shakhtar dominated possession with 116 attacks compared to Polissya's 70, yet the statistics tell a different story. The hosts registered three shots on target against eight off target, while Polissya managed four shots on target from two attempts off target. To be fair, the visitors were more clinical when it mattered.
Yellow cards cluttered the middle of the game, with Lindon Emerllahu and Mykyta Kravchenko booked for Shakhtar before Bogdan Mykhaylichenko received his caution for the visitors. The substitutions came in waves, particularly around the hour mark when both managers reshuffled their units.
Shakhtar's unbeaten run extends to three matches, with victories against Metalist 1925 Kharkiv and Epitsentr Dnistrovsk bookended by a heavy 1-5 defeat to Kudrivka. Polissya, meanwhile, have shown resilience with two wins and one loss, including a 2-1 victory over Chornomorets earlier this month.