Starting XI: Shakhtar Vs Real

Midfielder Toni Kroos and €30m Brazilian full-back Danilo were also dropped with Spanish defender Dani Carvajal coming into the starting XI. The fact we only needed four games to qualify for the knockout stage of the Champions League shows the shape were in.

Shakhtar tried to comeback late on but it was too late and Real Madrid ran out winning 4-3.

According to the report, Benitez had this to say regarding his players, “I am absolutely confident that players still trust me”. But the Ligue 1 holders are unable to catch Group A leaders Real Madrid with one game remaining after their victory over Shakhtar Donetsk. “We have learned our lessons from the Barca game and I hope the last two losses won’t affect our team unity”. That is the big positive’.

Barcelona outscored opponents 28-4 in its last eight games, thanks mostly to the great form of strikers Luis Suarez and Neymar in Messi’s absence.

The defeat was Real’s second successive in La Liga following on from the 3-2 reverse to Sevilla back on November 8, and Gerrard hinted that Benitez is struggling to command the respect from his senior players in the Bernabeu dressing room.

“In this moment, I see so many people speaking especially about the clubs in trouble”, Mourinho said. “But we will try not to rely on the individuals”. While the Spaniard will not be sacked anytime soon, his relationship with key figures in the squad such as Cristiano Ronaldo appears to be at breaking point, and Gerrard admits that his outlook doesn’t look good. “I’ve taken on three jobs during a season, with Juve, Milan and PSG, and they all turned out to be negative”.

The ESPN FC crew talk to Charlie Davies about whether or not Real Madrid have lost their place among Europe’s top teams. Benitez denied that something had gone wrong structurally with his team.

“We know what our objectives are. When two teams meet with quality players, sometimes there can be plenty of goals”.

Shakhtar Donetsk vs Real Madrid 2015 (en vivo live score results below) heads to the field in a key UEFA Champions League futbol partido today.

The much-criticized Gareth Bale set up Cristiano Ronaldo for Madrid’s opening goal after 18 minutes, while the news of Paris Saint Germain’s easy win away to Malmo made it clear that Shakhtar had no chance of qualifying for the next round.