Shakhtar Donetsk Pimpin Peringkat Efisiensi Gol Liga Konferensi UEFA

Klub asal Ukraina Shakhtar Donetsk menempati posisi teratas dalam efisiensi penyelesaian akhir pada kompetisi Liga Konferensi UEFA musim 2025/2026 berdasarkan data statistik resmi expected goals (xG) yang dirilis pada Kamis, 21 Mei 2026.

Laporan dari UEFA menunjukkan bahwa tim yang dilatih oleh Arda Turan tersebut memproduksi 21 gol dari total nilai xG yang hanya sebesar 16,02.

Catatan tersebut membuat juara Liga Utama Ukraina ini mengantongi surplus sebesar 4,98 gol di atas kualitas peluang yang mereka miliki sepanjang kompetisi.

Ketajaman lini depan klub diperkuat setelah penyerang internasional asal Burkina Faso, Lassina Traore, resmi menandatangani perpanjangan kontrak baru dengan durasi lima tahun hingga musim panas 2031.

Dilansir dari laporan media Africa Foot, Lassina Traore mengungkapkan bahwa stabilitas dan kesempatan bermain di Liga Champions menjadi alasan utama dirinya bertahan di Ukraina meski diincar klub Eropa lainnya.

"Stability, the Champions League, and I find all the perfect conditions here, the trust at every level to develop." ujar Lassina Traore, Penyerang Shakhtar Donetsk.

Sebelum pengumuman kontrak baru tersebut, Traore sempat mencetak gol pembuka saat Shakhtar menang 3-2 atas Kryvbas KR dalam laga domestik yang diwarnai peringatan serangan udara.

Pelatih kepala Arda Turan menyanggah anggapan bahwa jadwal padat dan situasi eksternal saat ini merupakan periode paling berat yang harus dilalui oleh anak asuhnya.

"No, I wouldn’t say it is the most difficult period. First of all, we are here for the children and for all the fans present, so we knew why we were travelling here. I would compare it with other, in my view, more demanding periods – for example, when we had three UPL matches in a week, including the rescheduled game with Zorya, as well as period when we had to compete on two fronts, in the Ukrainian league and in European competitions. It is also always difficult to return after international breaks and get back into rhythm. So yes, it is physically demanding, but as I said, we played for the children and for everyone here in the stands. Despite the external circumstances, which of course were not very pleasant, we understood the purpose of what we were doing." kata Arda Turan, Pelatih Kepala Shakhtar Donetsk.

Arda Turan juga menambahkan bahwa hubungannya dengan sang penyerang utama berjalan sangat baik dan diwarnai atmosfer positif di dalam skuad.

"We always have some small private jokes between us which we use in relation to whether he managed to score or not. For me, he is not only a footballer but, first of all, a person, and his contribution to us winning the Ukrainian Premier League title this season simply cannot be overstated. And I truly love him." tutur Arda Turan, Pelatih Kepala Shakhtar Donetsk.

Terkait kebijakan rotasi pemain penting seperti Riznyk dan Mykola Matviienko sebelum laga terakhir, sang pelatih menegaskan keputusan diambil bersama manajemen puncak klub dengan mengukur risiko cedera.

"We will think about it, and the decision will be made at the level of the club’s top management. We take into account all the minutes played over the season by each individual performer, as well as the potential risk of injury in this final stage of the season. If we go through the individuals briefly, Riznyk played a lot and deserved this rest; Kaua Elias and Alisson were injured, so they could also have left the club’s camp, but they continue to train individually. Mykola Matviienko has been called up very frequently to the Ukraine national team over the last two seasons, where he has also played full matches, so he was given time to rest in order to reduce the workload and the risk of injury ahead of the next season." jelas Arda Turan, Pelatih Kepala Shakhtar Donetsk.

Mengenai rencana perekrutan pemain baru untuk menghadapi kompetisi Liga Champions musim depan, Arda Turan menyerahkan urusan transfer tersebut sepenuhnya kepada Direktur Olahraga klub.

"I’m responsible for building the team in tactical and technical terms, and of course the Champions League is a completely different level of competition and a different level of football challenge, but regarding the actual squad planning and recruitment, it would be better to direct that question to Darijo Srna." ungkap Arda Turan, Pelatih Kepala Shakhtar Donetsk.

Arda Turan kemudian menyoroti kelelahan fisik para pemainnya yang harus menempuh perjalanan darat selama 16 jam serta memainkan dua hingga tiga pertandingan dalam sepekan.

"I think all the science in the world cannot provide a fully complete answer to that question. Given our schedule and the fact that we travelled here for 16 hours, there is no need to look for any special explanations. And if I’m not mistaken, in our last 16 matches we have regularly played two or three games a week, so I believe that says more than any explanation I could give," ujar Arda Turan, Pelatih Kepala Shakhtar Donetsk.

Di sisi lain, penyerang muda asal Nigeria berusia 22 tahun, Prosper Obah, mengaku sangat gembira setelah berhasil menyumbang dua gol penentu kemenangan dalam pertandingan melawan Kryvbas KR.

"Today was a good game, although a very difficult one. We traveled here for 16 hours, which is also not easy, but we played a solid match despite air raid alerts and other circumstances" puji Prosper Obah, Penyerang Shakhtar Donetsk.

Pemain muda yang saat ini sedang menarik minat dari beberapa klub Inggris tersebut menegaskan tekad seluruh elemen tim untuk memenangi sisa laga domestik musim ini.

"We really fought on the pitch and are very happy that we managed to win. And I am very, very happy that I was able to score two good goals in this match. I’m truly happy about it!" tutur Prosper Obah, Penyerang Shakhtar Donetsk.