Shakhtar eyeing top spot

FC Shakhtar Donetsk entertain FC Dynamo Kyiv later today knowing that a victory will see them leapfrog their great rivals to the top of the Ukrainian Premier League.

'Defeat is history'
Shakhtar have the psychological edge after defeating Dynamo -who are two points clear with three games to go - 3-2 in the Ukrainian Cup final, but Olexiy Mykhaylichenko is unfazed. "Our defeat is history now," said the Dynamo coach, who insists his side will approach the game positively. "We never tell the players to play for the draw. Our goal is to get three points in Donetsk."

Big incentive
Shakhtar, formed 66 years ago, have never won the championship and their reward for doing so this season would be a place in the final UEFA Champions League qualifying round. "After our victory in Kiev, the fans are feeling too much euphoria - they think we must beat Dynamo and they forget what kind of opponent we are facing," said Shakhtar coach Nevio Scala. "We were more lucky in the cup final, but it doesn't mean we will be lucky again. We need to step up our performance."

Team news
Scala faces the prospect of being without goalkeeper Wojcech Kowalewski for the most important game of the season after he suffered an injury in the cup final. Playmaker Alexey Bakharev is also nursing an injury. Dynamo, though, are boosted by the return of Belarussian midfield player Alexandre Khatskevich and defender Yuri Dmitrulin.

Two to play
Dynamo's remaing games after today's encounter are against face FC Metalurgh Maruipol and FC Polihraftechnica Olexandriya, while Shakhtar are to tackle FC Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk and FC Zakarpattya Uzhgorod.