Shakhtar faces Bulgaria's CSKA in their second friendly match during their training camp in Turkey.

As is well known, the "miners" are strategically preparing for the decisive matches of the updated Champions League through friendly games. On January 22, the team from Donetsk will face the French club Brest, and a week later, on January 29, they will take on Borussia Dortmund. The Ukrainian squad has already played their debut friendly against Dinamo Zagreb. In a match with a unique format (two halves of 30 minutes and one of 45 minutes), Shakhtar narrowly missed out on victory in the final moments, ending the game in a 2:2 draw against the Croatians.

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On Wednesday, January 15, Donetsk's "Shakhtar" will play two friendly matches during their training camp in Turkey. The first opponent for coach Marino Pusica's team will be the Bulgarian CSKA. The match is set to take place in Belek and will kick off at 12:00 Kyiv time.

As is known, the "miners" are deliberately preparing for the decisive matches of the main stage of the updated Champions League through friendly games – on January 22, the Donetsk team will face French side Brest, and a week later, on January 29, they will play against Borussia Dortmund. The Ukrainian team has already conducted their debut friendly against Dinamo Zagreb – in a match with a unique format (two halves of 30 minutes and one of 45 minutes), "Shakhtar" lost their lead in the final minutes, resulting in a draw with the Croatians (2:2).

The Bulgarian CSKA is the most decorated football club in Bulgaria. Throughout its history, the team has won the national championship 31 times, secured 21 national cups, and claimed 4 supercups. However, the last title for the "armymen" dates back to 2008, but they have consistently finished in the top three of the championship for the past 8 seasons. In the 2023/24 season, the team finished in 3rd place, earning bronze medals. In the current season, CSKA is positioned eighth in the league table, accumulating 26 points.

The teams have met officially three times. In the 2001/02 season, the Sofia club eliminated the "miners" from the UEFA Cup in the 1/64 finals after two matches (0:3, 2:1). In the summer of 2018, a friendly ended in a draw (0:0), while in June 2019, thanks to a goal from Danilo Sikan, the Donetsk team emerged victorious (1:0).

FAVBET considers "Shakhtar" the favorite of the encounter. They offer odds of 1.98 for a victory. The success of the Bulgarians is rated at 3.30, while a draw is priced at 3.90. Experts anticipate a high-scoring match: the standard total of over 2.5 is set at 1.64, while the total of under 2.5 is at 2.19.

Where to watch the friendly match between "Shakhtar" and CSKA

All of Donetsk's friendlies will be streamed live on the club's official YouTube channel. The match against the Bulgarians can be found here.