**Shakhtar looking to shake off the draw-bug while Kryvbas hunts some consistency** 🔥 A friendly clash that'll tell us plenty about both sides' pre-season form as the season gathers pace.

Shakhtar are frustratingly stalemate-prone lately — four draws in five with just one win — but they'll fancy themselves against a Kryvbas side that's been leaky at the back (three losses in their last five). Kryvbas showed spark with a 2-1 win over Gent recently, though, so they won't roll over.

Key storylines:

- **Shakhtar** need to finally convert dominance into three points; the draw streak ends here or it lingers into the season proper
- **Kryvbas** have wobbled defensively but picked up a quality scalp against Gent — they're capable of a shock on their day
- Whoever controls the midfield shapes this; Shakhtar's pedigree should edge it

Expected lineups:

- **Shakhtar Donetsk**: Riznyk, Bondarenko, Matviyenko, Sudakov, Nazarenko, Mudryk
- **FC Kryvbas Kryvyi Rih**: Shovkovskyi, Kravets, Bondar, Sikan, Melnykov, Karavaev

Prediction:

**Shakhtar 2–0 Kryvbas** — the hosts break their draw curse with a clean-sheet win. Slight favorite, but friendlies are friendlies.