Russia and Germany are infrequent rivals at Under-21 level but neither will be able to take long to familiarise themselves with their opponents when they come face to face in the Netanya Stadium as Group B concludes.

Previous meetings
• This will be the sides' first UEFA European Under-21 Championship meeting and their first match of any description in a decade. In their last friendly encounter, on 19 August 2003, Mike Hanke gave Germany a 17th-minute lead but goals from Roman Adamov (60) and Spartak Gogniev (77) turned the contest in Russia's favour.

• The teams at the Torpedo Stadium in Moscow were:
Russia: Akinfeev (Gabulov 46), Kuzmin (Gogniev 46), Rogochi (Karlashchuk 36), Belozerov, Anyukov, Denisov, Bober (Vinogradov 57), Kusov, Vanyushin, Pimenov (Arshavin 46), Adamov.
Germany: Wiese, Schlicke (Franz 62), Madlung, Kling, Tiffert (Kuranyi 83), Balitsch (Görlitz 46), Hitzlsperger (Lapaczinski 46), Gemiti (Rathgeb 75), Marx (Burkhardt 46), Jones, Hanke.

• A year earlier two Benjamin Auer goals – the second in the 90th minute – helped Germany to a home friendly win by the same 2-1 scoreline. Andrey Arshavin had seemingly earned the visitors a draw in Hoffenheim with an 86th-minute equaliser.

• Russia were 4-2 winners in Idar-Oberstein in August 1997 and overcame Germany 2-0 in a Moscow friendly in September 1994 – the teams' first friendly meeting.

• The Soviet Union were unbeaten in five games against both West Germany and the reunified Germany between 1984 and 1991, recording two wins and three draws.

• Two of those matches came in the 1990 European Championships when the USSR drew 1-1 at home, then won 2-1 away to eliminate West Germany in the last eight, on their way to picking up the 1990 title. 

• It was a different story in 1982, however, West Germany defeating the USSR 5-0 in Aachen and 4-3 in Kharkiv.

Match background
• This is Russia's first finals appearance as an independent nation under the current format. They reached the quarter-finals in 1994 and 1998 and were knocked out in the play-offs for the 2000, 2006 and 2007 finals.

• As part of the Soviet Union, they were European champions in 1980 and 1990.

• Germany failed to qualify for Denmark last time out having lifting the trophy in Sweden in 2009 where England were defeated 4-0 in the final in Malmo. That is Germany's sole U21 triumph, although as West Germany they were runners-up in 1982.

• Germany were eliminated in the group stage of the 2004 and 2006 finals – hosting the former edition – and lost in the quarter-finals in 1990, 1992, 1996 and 1998.

Team ties
• Konstantin Rausch's Hannover 96 have been drawn against an FC Anji Makhachkala side whose squad includes Arseni Logashov, Fedor Smolov and Oleg Shatov in the 2012/13 UEFA Europa League round of 32. 

• Nikita Chicherin's FC Dinamo Moskva lost 3-1 on aggregate to VfB Stuttgart in the UEFA Europa League play-offs in August 2012. Antonio Rüdiger did not feature for the German club while Chicherin played 90 minutes of Dinamo's 1-1 draw in the home second leg.

• Russia coach Nikolai Pisarev spent 1996/97 on loan at FC St Pauli – then in the Bundesliga – scoring four goals in 21 appearances.