Ukraine round-up: Giants bound for Champions League

FC Dynamo Kyiv and FC Shakhtar Donetsk have each secured a place in next season's UEFA Champions League after victories yesterday. Shakhtar won 4-0 at home against FC Karpaty Lviv to remain a point behind league leaders Dynamo, who beat FC Metalurh Zaporizhya 3-0.

Bielyk hat-trick
Andriy Vorobei opened the scoring for Shakhtar on 18 minutes before Ukraine Under-21 star Olexiy Bielyk recorded his third hat-trick of the season inside 16 second-half minutes to inflict a heavy defeat on Karpaty. A second-half assault brought Dynamo victory against Zaporizhya, Aleksandr Khatskevich, Florin Cernat and Maxim Shatskikh all scoring after the break.

UEFA Cup tussle
Further down the table, three clubs in contention for two UEFA Cup spots are now level on 53 points. FC Metalurh Donetsk dropped points after a 1-1 draw with FC Illychivets Mariupil, while FC Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk took the chance to close the gap with a 4-2 victory against FC Obolon Kyiv.

Difficult run-in
FC Arsenal Kyiv beat FC Kryvbas Kriviy Rih 2-1 to join Metalurh and Dnipro on 53 points but their chances of earning the third or fourth-placed finish necessary to qualify for the UEFA Cup look slim as they have to face Dynamo and Shakhtar in their final two games of the season, with the top two sides still competing for the title.

Relegation mire
FC Chornomorets Odesa look set to avoid relegation, as they recorded a fifth home victory in a row by beating FC Olexandria 2-1. Meanwhile, FC Metalist Kharkiv seem doomed after a goalless draw with FC Vorskla Poltava left them five points adrift of safety. Finally, FC Tavriya Simferopol drew 1-1 against FC Volyn Lutsk.