Pep Guardiola's side host their Ukrainian opponents on Wednesday having beaten them 3-0 away last time out in Group F.
However City lost their opening European game with a shock home defeat to Lyon.
Then in five days time the reigning champions will be at home to fierce rivals United – already seven points ahead of them in the Premier League.
And Guardiola and defender Kyle Walker have highlighted just how important the game against Donetsk is.
Speaking to the press, the gaffer said: "Every game is important and you have to evaluate.
"The most important will be Shakhtar, first because it is the next one and second because it is a final.
"It is not easy to win the third and the fourth game against the same opponent in a short period.
"After dropping points against Lyon, every game is a final.
"We have a big chance to make an incredible step to qualify for the next round and after we have three or four days to think about United."
And this is focus is also shared by England man Walker.
He added: "Every game is important. We have to take it game by game.
"We are fully focused on the game [against Shakhtar] and then come Sunday we will think about that after this game.
"I felt last season we had a great chance [to win the Champions League] but we came up against Liverpool [in the quarter-finals] who were on fire and we had two 10 minutes of madness in the first leg which let it go for us, but I feel we have learned from that.
"It was a good lesson to learn and hopefully we can take it into this campaign and come with a front foot forward.
"The standard in the Champions League, it is a knockout game, each and every game is important. Going to Anfield in that game, we could have gone there got a draw.
"We had to come back to the Etihad and play on our own turf.
"That is something I have definitely learned from last season and hopefully we can take it into this season."
Also taking on some importance at the club currently are the claims in German magazine Der Spiegel that the club hid millions of pounds to get around Uefa Financial Fair Play rules.
City said the money was coming from Abu Dhabi sponsors but the new reports claim it was actually coming from owner Sheikh Mansour.
The latest leaks date back to well before Guardiola arrived at the Etihad – and he says he had no involvement.
He said: "The club has made a statement on Friday about what happened, stolen emails. Of course I trust the club what they have done.
"Of course we want to follow the rules. Uefa, Fifa and the Premier League they do what they have to do.
"Believe me, I'm completely honest, I don't know what happened, I'm a manager, focused on the pitch, locker, room.
"I'm a manager. I'm completely out of how we handle this situation.
"I'm part of the club, I support the club. We want to do what we have to do in terms of the rules."
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