Shakhtar Donetsk v Sporting CP: UEFA Champions League preview

The occasion and the table

Shakhtar Donetsk host Sporting CP in the UEFA Champions League on 3 November 2026 at 17:45. Both clubs come into the match with a positive points return from their opening fixtures in the competition.

Shakhtar Donetsk sit 17th in the table with 4 points from 3 matches. Their record shows 1 win, 1 draw and 1 defeat, with 4 goals scored and 3 conceded.

Sporting CP are 12th with 6 points from their 3 matches. They have 2 wins and 1 defeat, without a draw, and have scored 7 goals while conceding 4. That gives the visitors both a higher points total and more goals than their hosts.

Recent form and home and away records

Shakhtar Donetsk's last five matches have brought 1 win, 1 draw and 3 defeats. Most recently, they lost 0-1 away to Inter Milan. Before that, they beat AEK Athens 3-1 at home, and before that they drew 1-1 away to PSV Eindhoven. Their two earlier results in this run were both against Crystal Palace: a 1-2 defeat away and, before that, a 1-3 defeat at home.

Sporting CP's last five matches have produced 3 wins, 0 draws and 2 defeats. Their latest outing was a 2-0 away win over Casa Pia. Before that, they lost 1-2 at home to Viseu, and before that they were beaten 2-3 at home by LASK. Further back, they won 2-0 away at Lens and, before that, 3-1 away at Braga. All three of those wins came on the road, while both defeats came at home.

In the UEFA Champions League this season, Shakhtar Donetsk have played 1 match at home and won it, scoring 3 goals and conceding 1. Sporting CP have played 1 match away from home in the competition and also won it, scoring 2 goals without conceding.

So the hosts bring a perfect home record in the competition, and the visitors a perfect away record, though each is based on a single match.

Players to watch

Gleiker Mendoza is Shakhtar Donetsk's top scorer in the UEFA Champions League this season with 2 goals. That accounts for half of his side's 4 goals in the competition so far.

For Sporting CP, Luis Javier Suarez Charris leads the way with 4 goals in the UEFA Champions League this season. He has scored 4 of his club's 7 goals in the competition, matching the total that Shakhtar Donetsk have managed as a team.

How the two sides tend to play

The numbers point to a Shakhtar Donetsk side that usually finds the net but has struggled to keep opponents out. They scored in 4 of their last five matches but did not keep a clean sheet in any of them, and both teams scored in 4 of those five games.

Sporting CP have been consistent in front of goal, scoring in all of their last five matches. They also kept 2 clean sheets in that run, and both teams scored in 3 of those five games.

In the UEFA Champions League table, Sporting CP's 7 goals scored from 3 matches is the stronger attacking return of the two, while Shakhtar Donetsk have conceded 3 to Sporting CP's 4.

Estimated win chances

Estimated win chances computed by goal888 from market data, with the margin removed, are: Shakhtar Donetsk 27%, draw 25%, Sporting CP 48%.

These figures are estimates derived from market data. They are not a prediction of the result and are not advice of any kind.

Calculated from market prices, not a prediction or betting advice.