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Schalke will face off against Shakhtar Donetsk in their fourth friendly of the summer on Friday in Mitersill, Austria.
The two sides have both played three friendlies so far. While Schalke have drawn one and won two, Shakhtar Donetsk have won twice and lost once.
The clash against Shakhtar will be a stern test for Schalke. Manager Dimitrios Grammozis is still working on finding the right balance and getting the players fit for their opening game of the Bundesliga season against Hamburg.
The Royal Blues played out a 0-0 draw against FC Zenit in their previous friendly fixture, and will hope to put in a more accomplished display against Shakhtar.
Both teams are slowly getting to their peak fitness ahead of their season opener towards the final week of July.
Shakhtar Donetsk vs Schalke Head-to-head
The two teams have faced off four times, and Shakhtar have never lost against the Royal Blues. Schalke have lost twice and drawn twice against the Ukrainians.
The most recent meeting between the two teams, in 2016, ended in a 3-0 win for Shakhtar Donetsk.
Shakhtar Donetsk form guide (pre-season): W-W-D
Schalke form guide (pre-season): W-L-W
Shakhtar Donetsk vs Schalke Team News
Shakhtar Donetsk
The Ukrainian quartet of Andriy Pyatov, Mykola Matviienko, Taras Stepanenko and Marlos are back after an extended break following their exploits at Euro 2020. There are no reported injuries or suspensions for Hirnyky.
Injured: None
Suspended: None
Schalke
Manager Grammozis will be without Salif Sane, who has left the training camp in Austria after picking up a knee injury.
Injured: Salif Sane
Suspended: None
Shakhtar Donetsk vs Schalke Predicted Lineups
Shakhtar Donetsk predicted lineup: Oleksiy Shevchenko; Dodo, Vitao, Marlon, Viktor Kornienko; Alan Patrick, Taras Stepanenko; Tete, Pedrinho, Mykhailo Mudryk; Lassina Traore
Schalke predicted lineup: Ralf Fährmann; Marcin Kaminski, Timo Becker, Malick Thiaw, Thomas Ouwejan; Dani Latza, Victor Palsson; Reinhold Ranftl, Nassim Boujellab, Marius Bulter; Simon Terodde
Shakhtar Donetsk vs Schalke Prediction
Both teams will look to continue their search for more fitness and the managers will hope they find their rhythm soon in the game.
Schalke created a few openings against Zenit, but failed to score. We expect them to score against Shakhtar. Their impressive run of clean-sheets in the friendlies could however come to an end.
Score prediction: Shakhtar Donetsk 1-1 Schalke
Also Read: David James' column - Euro 2020: 5 players who deserve more playing time
