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Galatasaray ready to settle old debt

Club Atlético de Madrid squeezed through in their last tie with Galatasaray AŞ in 1973, but at the halfway stage it is the Turkish club that hold the edge this time round.

Galatasaray ready to settle old debt
Galatasaray ready to settle old debt ©UEFA.com

Galatasaray AŞ are on course to make amends for a 36-year-old defeat as they go into the home leg of their UEFA Europa League round of 32 tie against Club Atlético de Madrid having drawn 1-1 in the opener in Spain.

• José Antonio Reyes had put Atlético ahead with a 23rd-minute free-kick but Kader Keita's strike 13 minutes from time gave Galatasaray a draw and a potentially crucial away goal to take home to Istanbul.

Previous meetings
• Prior to the first leg, the clubs had not faced each other since substitute Ignacio Salcedo's extra-time goal in Istanbul decided a tense European Champion Clubs' Cup first-round encounter on 3 October 1973. It was the only goal of the tie.

• After Brian Birch's Galatasaray had earned a goalless draw in Spain, Juan Carlos Lorenzo's men won through with Salcedo's 100th-minute strike at the Ali Sami Yen Stadium, going on to reach the European Cup final that season, which they lost 4-0 to FC Bayern München after a replay.

• That Atlético team included future Spain and Fenerbahçe SK coach Luis Aragonés and Manuel Reina, the father of Liverpool FC goalkeeper Pepe.

• The teams for the second leg in Istanbul on 3 October 1973 were:
Galatasaray: Yasin Özdenak, Ekrem Günalp, Aydın Güleş, Muzaffer Sipahi (Tarık Küpoğlu, 55), Tuncay Temeller, Bülent Ünder (Ahmet Celovic, 78), Mustafa Ergücü, Mehmet Oğuz, Gökmen Özdenak, Mehmet Özgül, Şevki Şenlen.
Atlético: Reina, Melo, Capón, Adelardo Rodríguez, Ovejero, Benegas, Alberto Fernández, Aragonés, Gárate, Irureta (Salcedo, 83), Becerra.

Match background
• The last time Atlético won a game in Europe after Christmas was in the 1998/99 UEFA Cup quarter-finals, when they defeated AS Roma 2-1 home and away. They are without a victory in nine springtime continental fixtures, having bowed out of last season's UEFA Champions League first knockout round to FC Porto on away goals following two draws.

• Galatasaray reached the round of 32 in the final two editions of the UEFA Cup, bowing out to Bayer 04 Leverkusen in 2007/08 but overcoming FC Girondins de Bordeaux last season before losing to Hamburger SV in the last 16.

• Galatasaray are unbeaten in six European home games under Frank Rijkaard, with five wins and a draw producing an impressive aggregate score of 19-2; an average of over three goals a game.

• Atlético have won only one of their last seven European away games – a 3-2 success at Panathinaikos FC this season. The other six ties ended in four draws and two defeats.

Team facts 
• Galatasaray coach Rijkaard came up against Atlético ten times in the Spanish Liga during his spell in charge of FC Barcelona. His record against the Rojiblancos was W3 D3 L4 (W2 D1 L2 at home).

• Rijkaard also faced Atlético as a player in 1987/88, his Real Zaragoza side losing 2-0 at La Romareda.

• Rijkaard and Atlético coach Quique Sánchez Flores met six times when the latter was in charge of Getafe CF (2004/05) and Valencia CF (2005/06 and 2006/07). Each coach recorded two wins, with the other two games drawn.

• Leo Franco has been first-choice goalkeeper at Galatasaray since joining from Atlético in the summer. The Argentinian custodian spent five years at the Vicente Calderón following spells with Mérida CF and RCD Mallorca.

• Milan Baroš and Tomáš Ujfaluši were long-standing colleagues with the Czech Republic national team, having both earned 78 caps for their country. The latter has now retired from international football.

• Ujfaluši was in the Czech team eliminated from UEFA EURO 2008 by Turkey after surrendering a two-goal lead in a 3-2 defeat in Geneva. Arda Turan scored Turkey's first goal in a match that also featured his Galatasaray club-mates Servet Çetin, Hakan Balta and Mehmet Topal.

• As they prepare for their 205th European game, Atlético are three goals shy of their 350th strike in UEFA club competition.

• The winners of this tie face the victors of the tie between Everton and Sporting Clube de Portugal in the round of 16 on 11 and 18 March, playing the first leg at home.

Penalties
• Galatarasay's only European penalty shoot-out to date ended in a 4-1 success following a 0-0 draw against Arsenal FC in the 1999/00 UEFA Cup final in Copenhagen.

• Atlético have lost all three of their UEFA club competition penalty shoot-outs to date; 7-6 at home to Derby County FC in the 1974/75 UEFA Cup, 3-1 at ACF Fiorentina in the 1989/90 UEFA Cup and 3-1 at home against Villarreal CF in a 2004 UEFA Intertoto Cup final.

Atlético
Suspended: Álvaro Domínguez
Misses next match if booked: none
Players added to squad: David de Gea, Eduardo Salvio
Players removed from squad: Maxi Rodríguez, Florent Sinama Pongolle, Roberto, Cléber Santana

Galatasaray
Suspended: none
Misses next match if booked: Emre Aşık, Harry Kewell
Players added to squad: Lucas Neill, Giovani Dos Santos, Sinan Osmanoğlu
Players removed from squad: Tobias Linderoth, Alparslan Erdem, Shabani Nonda, Semih Kaya, Sadrettin Kocaoğlu, Serdar Eylik