Shakhtar Donetsk v Sevilla: Stepanenko ready for reigning champions

Sevilla may be the most successful side in Europa League history but Taras Stepanenko is confident Shakhtar Donetsk can upset the two-time defending champions.

Unai Emery s side are preparing for the first leg of their third successive semi-final appearance on Thursday, with just one defeat in their last 12 matches in the competition, which they have won four times.

The two sides met in the competition in 2007, then in the guise of the UEFA Cup, when a dramatic conclusion saw Sevilla goalkeeper Andres Palop score to take the game into extra-time, before Javier Chevanton grabbed the decisive goal.

That stoppage-time header denied Shakhtar a place in the quarter-finals, but they quickly got over the heartache to win the competition two years later – their only Eu…