Arda Turan Puji Dedikasi Skuad Shakhtar Donetsk Usai Juara Liga

Pelatih kepala Shakhtar Donetsk Arda Turan memberikan apresiasi tinggi terhadap dedikasi pasukannya yang kelelahan setelah menempuh perjalanan darat 16 jam serta jadwal padat memainkan dua hingga tiga laga seminggu dalam 16 pertandingan terakhir.

Apresiasi tersebut disampaikan setelah klub juara Ukraina ini memastikan gelar juara Liga Premier Ukraina musim ini berkat kemenangan dramatis 3-2 atas Kryvbas KR pada pertandingan pekan kedua terakhir liga yang sempat terinterupsi selama total lima jam akibat sirene serangan udara.

Di kancah Eropa, efisiensi penyelesaian akhir Shakhtar Donetsk juga menempati peringkat tertinggi dalam kompetisi Liga Konferensi UEFA musim 2025/2026 berdasarkan data statistik resmi Expected Goals (xG) yang dirilis dari laporan UEFA oleh Swissquote pada Kamis, 21 Mei 2026.

Berikut adalah tabel lengkap peringkat efisiensi gol berdasarkan data resmi UEFA:

Ketajaman lini depan Shakhtar Donetsk salah satunya dibantu oleh gol spektakuler Pedrinho ke gawang AZ Alkmaar pada laga pertama perempat final yang tercipta dari nilai xG sebesar 0,04, meskipun langkah tim akhirnya terhenti di babak semifinal.

Produktivitas klub kian diperkuat dengan langkah manajemen mengamankan tanda tangan penyerang internasional Burkina Faso, Lassina Traore, melalui perpanjangan kontrak baru berdurasi lima tahun hingga musim panas 2031 pada Selasa, 19 Mei 2026.

Traore yang mengemas 7 gol dan 1 asis dari 13 laga domestik pascapulih dari cedera panjang membeberkan alasannya memperbarui kontrak di tengah ketertarikan sejumlah klub Eropa lain.

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

Turan menyanggah pertanyaan wartawan mengenai apakah pekan ini menjadi periode tersulit bagi tim akibat gangguan eksternal di Ukraina.

"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.

Turan juga menjelaskan mengenai situasi dua pergantian pemain terpaksa pada babak pertama akibat cedera saat menghadapi Kryvbas KR.

"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.

Turan kemudian menambahkan bahwa kontribusi Traore yang direkrut dari Ajax Amsterdam senilai 10 juta euro pada 2021 sangat besar bagi keharmonisan dan kesuksesan tim meraih trofi juara liga.

"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 rotasi pemain inti seperti Mykola Matviienko dan Riznyk menjelang pertandingan penutup musim, Turan menegaskan keputusan diistirahatkannya pemain demi meminimalkan risiko cedera berada di bawah wewenang manajemen puncak.

"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.

Sementara untuk rencana perekrutan amunisi baru demi menghadapi tantangan di level Liga Champions musim depan, Turan menyerahkan urusan tersebut kepada jajaran direksi.

"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.

Di sisi lain, finalis kompetisi Liga Konferensi UEFA Crystal Palace berada di papan bawah efisiensi setelah hanya mencetak 25 gol dari nilai xG sebesar 31,14 yang berarti mereka menghasilkan 6,14 gol lebih sedikit dari perkiraan metrik, sementara Shakhtar bersiap menyambut penyerang muda asal Nigeria berusia 22 tahun, Prosper.