Kharkiv - Shakhtar: Competitor's Forecast for Matchday 3 of UPL, August 16, 2026

On Sunday, August 16, within the third round of the UPL, Kharkiv will meet with the current champion of Ukraine, Shakhtar. The match will take place at Arena Lvivyi Bereh in Kyiv, and the kickoff is scheduled for 15:30.

Kharkiv

Kharkiv started the championship with a victory over Veres (1:0), but in the second round, they lost to Polissya (1:3). Currently, the team has three points and occupies the eighth place in the standings.

The preparation for the season also did not add optimism. In eight summer friendlies, Kharkiv won only once, played two draws, and suffered five defeats. Another failure came after the start of the UPL, losing to Lvivyi Bereh in a friendly match with a score of 1:2.

In the last 12 matches, considering official and friendly games, Kharkiv won only twice.

Also, the personal meetings statistics are not in favor of the hosts. In the seven previous matches against Shakhtar, Kharkiv never won: 2 draws and 5 losses.

Shakhtar

The current champion of Ukraine is confidently moving through the new season. Shakhtar crushed Kudrivka (5:1) in the first round and then defeated Epitsentr (2:0).

The Donetsk club has six points and is in second place before the third round. Karpaty are leading, having already played their match of this round.

In the summer, Shakhtar played five friendly matches, winning two and drawing three times. In official matches, the team also shows stable results: in the last five UPL matches, including the end of the previous season, the miners won four times and lost only once.

In the championship season 2025/26, Shakhtar suffered only two defeats overall and is now preparing for the group stage of the Champions League.

Based on the recent results and the history of head-to-head meetings, Shakhtar is considered the favorite for the match. At the same time, Kharkiv will have a chance to surprise the champion at the start of the season.

Statistics for betting:

Shakhtar has not lost to Kharkiv in the seven previous head-to-head meetings;

Donetsk won both first matches of the new UPL season;

Kharkiv has only won 2 matches in the last 12 games in all competitions and friendly matches.

Bookmakers see Shakhtar as the favorite of this game.

Kharkiv's victory - coefficient 5.66

Draw - coefficient 4.41

Shakhtar's victory - coefficient 1.67

We believe that the match will end with Donetsk's victory:

Kharkiv's victory - 13%

Draw - 26%

Shakhtar's victory - 61%