Shakhtar hold dominant Inter to goalless stalemate

Internazionale missed a string of chances against a subdued Shakhtar Donetsk as the two sides fought a 0-0 draw in their Champions League Group B match on Tuesday.

The result left Shakhtar top of the group on four points from two games, while Inter and Borussia Monchengladbach have two points each. Monchengladbach allowed a late goal against Real Madrid in the late match for a 2-2 draw. Real now find themselves the surprise bottom dwellers in the group with just one point. 

Inter drubbed Shakhtar 5-0 in last season's Europa League semifinal in August but the Ukrainian champions proved to be a tougher nut to crack this time as their goalkeeper Anatolii Trubin shone at the Olympic stadium in Kiev.

The Italian side twice hit the crossbar in the opening half, with Romelu Lukaku seeing his thundering free kick tipped on to the woodwork by Trubin who got the nod from manager Luis Castro ahead of stalwart Andriy Pyatov.

Shakhtar were barely able to break out of their own half and it was very much one-way traffic in the second half too as Inter piled the pressure.

The visitors missed a gilt-edged chance in the 54th minute as Trubin parried a Marcelo Brozovic shot and Lautaro Martinez scuffed the rebound wide with the goal at his mercy.

Inter launched waves of attacks in the final 15 minutes but Shakhtar's defence, ripped apart by Inter in their previous clash, held firm as the back four made several desperate clearances to keep a clean sheet.

Shakhtar's forwards, who shone in the opening shock 3-2 win at Real, were given no room to operate by Inter's defenders who confined their opponents to just one shot on target.