Arsenal suffered a 2-0 defeat to Bournemouth at the weekend, with William Saliba receiving an early red card. The Frenchman was sent off, which left them further behind Liverpool and Man City in the Premier League table.
Mikel Arteta's side will now turn their attention to the Champions League. The Gunners are currently 13th in the table with four points from two games. They have not lost a group stage match at home in Europe's premier competition since September 2015.
On the other side, Shakhtar suffered a 0-3 defeat to Atalanta in the previous match. Marino Pusic's team only got 1 point after a goalless draw against Bologna in the first match.
Shakhtar are one of four teams still waiting for their first goal in the 2024-2025 Champions League, along with Bologna, Red Bull Salzburg and BSC Young Boys. Finishing is a big problem for this team, with only 1 shot on target after 2 matches.
In the domestic league, the Ukrainian representative has better form. After the first 9 rounds, they have lost only 1 match, won 9 matches. But the unstable start has left Shakhtar only in 4th place in the Ukrainian Premier League standings.
In the past, they have visited Arsenal twice but lost both times, most recently a 1-5 defeat in 2010. Considering many different factors, Shakhtar will have a hard time if they want to get points against the North London representative in midweek.
Expected lineup
Arsenal: Raya; White, Saliba, Gabriel, Zinchenko; Havertz, Rice, Merino; Sterling, Jesus, Trossard
Shakhtar Donetsk: Riznyk; Konoplya, Bondar, Matvienko, Henrique; Stepanenko; Zubkov, Bondarenko, Sudakov, Newerton; Sikan