Montpellier

UEFA Champions League statistics
• This is Montpellier's first game in the European Cup. They are one of three clubs making their debut in the group stage this season, along with Málaga CF and FC Nordsjælland.

• The French champions have scored 49 goals in UEFA competition.

• Romain Pitau is suspended for the first two group stage matches following his red card against Győri ETO FC in the 2010/11 UEFA Europa League third qualifying round.

International duty
• Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa (France), Younés Belhanda (Morocco), Henri Bedimo (Cameroon) and Jamel Saihi (Tunisia) were on international duty last week.

• Yanga-Mbiwa received a yellow card in France's FIFA World Cup qualifying victories over Finland (1-0) and Belarus (3-1) and will be suspended for next month's encounter with Spain.

• Rémi Cabella and Benjamin Stambouli were part of the France team that dropped their first points of the campaign by losing 2-1 to Slovakia on 7 September in 2013 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualifying. Cabella was on target three days later as France, who will participate in the play-offs, defeated Chile 4-0 in a friendly.

Summer transfers
• In
Emanuel Herrera (CD Unión Española)
Anthony Mounier (OGC Nice)
Daniel Congré (Toulouse FC)
Gaëtan Charbonnier (Angers SCO)
Jonas Martin (Amiens SC)
Teddy Mezague (FC Martigues)
Guillaume Legras (FC Martigues)*
Adrien Coulomb (Vannes OC)*

*not in UEFA Champions league squad

• Out
Olivier Giroud (Arsenal FC)
Geoffrey Dernis (Stade Brestois 29)
Grégory Lacombe (Clermont Foot Auvergne)
William Aho Abou (AC Arles Avignon)
Bengali-Fodé Koita (Le Havre AC, loan)

Miscellaneous
• It took René Girard's side until the fourth Ligue 1 match of the season to record their first victory; they won their opening three fixtures last term.

Arsenal

UEFA Champions League statistics
• Arsène Wenger starts a three-game touchline ban on matchday one.

• Arsenal have scored 346 goals in UEFA competition.

International duty
• Thirteen Arsenal players were on senior duty during the international break: Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Theo Walcott (England), Lukas Podolski, Per Mertesacker (Germany), Abou Diaby, Olivier Giroud, Laurent Koscielny (France), Santi Cazorla (Spain), Thomas Vermaelen (Belgium), Łukasz Fabiański (Poland), Johan Djourou (Switzerland), Aaron Ramsey (Wales) and Gervinho (Ivory Coast).

• Diaby's first international goal ensured France started their FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign with a 1-0 win in Finland but he missed the meeting with Belarus four days later because of a muscle strain.

• Cazorla opened the scoring as Spain defeated Saudi Arabia 5-0 in a friendly on 7 September.

• Gervinho was on target in Ivory Coast's 4-2 victory against Senegal in the first leg of their 2013 Africa Cup of Nations second round tie.

Summer transfers
• In
Lukas Podolski (1. FC Köln)
Olivier Giroud (Montpellier Hérault SC)
Santi Cazorla (Málaga CF)

• Out
Robin van Persie (Manchester United FC)
Alex Song (FC Barcelona)
Carlos Vela (Real Sociedad de Fútbol)
Kyle Bartley (Swansea City AFC)
Henri Lansbury (Nottingham Forest FC)
Manuel Almunia (Watford FC)
Joel Campbell (Real Betis Balompié, loan)
Ryo Miyaichi (Wigan Athletic FC, loan)
Park Chu-Young (RC Celta de Vigo, loan)
Nicklas Bendtner (Juventus, loan)

Miscellaneous
• Arsenal are five away matches unbeaten in all competitions, since a 2-1 loss to Queens Park Rangers FC on 31 March.