Galatasaray vs Copenhagen match facts

Two sides who came through UEFA Champions League qualifying meet on Matchday 1 as Galatasaray – returning to this stage for the first time in four seasons – take on Copenhagen in Istanbul.

The Turkish team progressed from three rounds to earn a first group appearance since 2019/20 while Copenhagen – featuring in successive seasons for the first time – also kicked off their 2023/24 Champions League campaign in the second qualifying round.

With Bayern München and Manchester United also in Group A, both sides will be keen to make a positive start as they seek to end long absences from the knockout rounds; Galatasaray last made it out of their group in 2013/14 while Copenhagen's sole appearance in the round of 16 came in 2010/11.

Previous meetings 

The team's only previous fixtures came in the 2013/14 Champions League group stage.

Galatasaray were 3-1 winners in Istanbul on Matchday 3 thanks to first-half goals from Felipe Melo (10), Wesley Sneijder (38) and Didier Drogba (45+1), Claudemir with the Copenhagen consolation two minutes from time.

The Danish side turned the tables in Copenhagen on Matchday 4, Daniel Braaten's sixth-minute strike enough for a 1-0 win.

That proved Copenhagen's only win in Group B as they finished fourth on four points. Galatasaray, however, picked up seven points to take second place behind Real Madrid and ahead of Juventus before losing 3-1 on aggregate to Chelsea in the round of 16.

Form guide

Galatasaray

Record vs Danish clubs: W2 D1 L1 F6 A4
At home vs Danish clubs: W2 D0 L0

Aside from their 2013 games against Copenhagen, Galatasaray have faced Danish opponents twice, edging past Randers in the 2021/22 UEFA Europa League qualifying play-offs (1-1 a, 2-1 h).

Galatasaray are making their 17th appearance in the UEFA Champions League group stage – as many as all the other Turkish clubs put together.

The Istanbul club last featured in 2019/20, when they finished fourth in their section on two points having failed to win a game (D2 L4).

Galatasaray are the only team from Turkey to have reached a European Cup semi-final, in 1989.

Gala, who did not feature in UEFA competition in 2022/23, were beaten 7-2 on aggregate by PSV Eindhoven in the 2021/22 UEFA Champions League second qualifying round but went on to reach the UEFA Europa League round of 16, losing 2-1 against Barcelona over two legs.

Champions of Türkiye for a record 23rd time in 2022/23, finishing eight points clear of second-placed Fenerbahçe, Gala began this season with a 2-2 draw at Lithuanian side Žalgiris in the UEFA Champions League second qualifying round first leg. They progressed with a 1-0 home victory before easing past Olimpija Ljubljana of Slovenia in the third qualifying round (3-0 a, 1-0 h).

The Turkish team scored in added time to win both legs against Norwegian champions Molde in the play-offs, a 3-2 away triumph in which Norway midfielder Fredrik Midtsjø scored the last-gasp winner preceding a 2-1 home success with Angeliño getting the decisive goal.

The defeat by Barcelona two seasons ago is Cimbon's only loss in their last nine home European matches (W6 D2).

Galatasaray have, however, managed only two victories in their last 13 home matches in the Champions League, group stage to final (D5 L6).

Copenhagen

Record vs Turkish clubs: W3 D1 L2
Away record vs Turkish clubs: W1 D1 L2

Copenhagen reached last season's Champions League group stage with an aggregate victory against Turkish opponents, a 2-1 first-leg win at home to Trabzonspor setting up an aggregate play-off victory by the same score.

That made it four wins in four home games against Turkish clubs, and two games unbeaten in Türkiye (W1 D1).

Copenhagen are in the group stage for the sixth time, having made their first appearance since 2016/17 last season. No other Danish side has featured more than twice.

The Danish side finished fourth in their section for the third time in their five group campaigns in 2022/23, failing to win a game in Group G. They did, however, draw all three home matches, losing all three away including a 5-0 reverse at eventual champions Manchester City that equalled their biggest European defeat.

Four of Copenhagen's five campaigns in the UEFA Champions League proper have ended in the group stage, the exception 2010/11 when they lost to Chelsea in the round of 16 (0-2 h, 0-0 a).

The Danish side eased past Breidablik of Iceland in their first European tie this season in the second qualifying round (2-0 a, 6-3 h), but had to come through a tight third qualifying round contest against Sparta Praha, the first leg at Parken finishing scoreless before a 3-3 draw in Prague in which both teams scored twice in extra time, Copenhagen eventually prevailing 4-2 on penalties. They then edged past Polish champions Raków Częstochowa in the play-offs (1-0 a, 1-1 h).

The wins against Breidablik and in the first leg against Raków are Copenhagen's only victories in their last 12 European games (D6 L3), the respective first-leg successes their only away wins in eight matches (D3 L3).

A 2-0 win at Club Brugge on Matchday 6 in 2016/17 is Copenhagen's only victory in their last 12 away Champions League matches, group stage to final (D2 L9).

Copenhagen claimed their record-equalling 15th Danish league title, all since 1993, and their fifth in eight seasons in 2022/23. They also lifted the Danish Cup to win a sixth domestic double.

Links and trivia

Galatasaray lifted the 2000 UEFA Cup with a 4-1 penalties victory against Arsenal at Copenhagen's home ground Parken.

Danish defender Victor Nelsson made 86 appearances in all competitions for Copenhagen between July 2019 and August 2021, when he signed for Galatasaray.

Nelsson came through the youth ranks at Nordsjælland, making 97 appearances between 2016 and joining Copenhagen in 2019. His record against Copenhagen with Nordsjælland was W3 D5 L2.

Copenhagen forward Andreas Cornelius scored Trabzonspor's first goal in a 2-2 draw against Galatasaray in the Turkish Super League on 12 September 2021.

Cornelius scored 20 goals in 49 appearances for Trabzsonpor between 2021 and 2023.

Diogo Gonçalves hit a hat-trick in Benfica's 11-1 win at Galatasaray on Matchday 3 of the 2015/16 UEFA Youth League.

Khouma Babacar scored 18 goals in 45 appearances for Alanyaspor in all competitions between 2020 and January 2021, when he signed for Copenhagen. Three of those goals came at Galatasaray, all in 2020/21 – an equaliser in a 2-1 away league win on 19 October 2020 and two in a 3-2 victory in the Turkish Cup quarter-final on 10 February 2021.

Have played together:
Tetê & Davit Khocholava (Shakhtar 2019–21)

International team-mates:
Victor Nelsson & Nicolai Boilesen, Andreas Cornelius (Denmark)

Galatasaray forward Dries Mertens scored one goal and set up the other in Belgium's 2-0 UEFA Nations League win away to Denmark at Copenhagen's Parken on 5 September 2020.

Copenhagen midfielder Viktor Claesson scored Sweden's second goal as the Scandinavian side let slip a 2-0 lead to lose 3-2 at home to Türkiye in the Nations League on 10 September 2018.

Latest news

Galatasaray

Summer signings
In: Mauro Icardi (Paris), Kerem Demirbay (Bayer Leverkusen), Kaan Ayhan (Sassuolo), Angeliño (Leipzig, loan), Cédric Bakambu (Al-Nasr), Halil Dervisoglu (Brentford), Sirachan Nas (Ankaraspor, loaned to Samsunspor), Günay Güvenç (Gaziantep), Tetê (Shakhtar Donetsk), Wilfried Zaha (Crystal Palace), Hakim Ziyech (Chelsea, loan), Davinson Sánchez (Tottenham), Tanguy Ndombélé (Tottenham, loan)
Out: Mostafa Mohamed (Nantes), Nicolò Zaniolo (Aston Villa, loan), Olimpiu Morutan (Ankaragücü), Yunus Akgün (Leicester, loan), Mathias Ross (NEC Nijmegen, loan), Emre Kilinc (Samsunspor), Okan Kocuk (Samsunspor), Bafétimbi Gomis (Kawasaki Front), Alpaslan Öztürk (Pendikspor), Emre Tasdemir (Pendikspor), Süleyman Luş (Corum), Asbussamed Karnucu (68 Aksaray Belediye), Atalay Babacan (Boluspor), Gökay Güney (Kirsehir), Alexandru Cicaldau (Konyaspor, loan), Yusuf Demir (Basel, loan), Taylan Antalyali (Samsunspor, loan), Batuhan Sen (Gaziantep, loan), Metehan Baltaci (Eyüpspor, loan), Kaan Arslan (Fethiyespor, loan), Berk Balaban (Isparta 32 Spor, loan), Juan Mata (released), Emin Bayram (Westerlo, loan), Fredrik Midtsjø (Pendikspor), Berkan Kutlu (Genoa, loan) Léo Dubois (Başakşehir, loan)

Galatasaray's record this season in all competitions is W8 D2. They have won their last six matches, beating Samsunspor 4-2 at home on Saturday.

The Istanbul club have kept six clean sheets in their ten games in 2023/24, conceding seven goals in total.

Cimbon are now unbeaten in 16 games, winning 14, since a 3-1 loss at local rivals Beşiktaş on 30 April.

The Turkish champions have kicked off the new Super League season with wins against Trabzonspor (2-0) and at Gaziantep (3-0) before Saturday's success against Samsunspor after opening with a goalless draw at Kayserispor on 12 August.

Gala's run of five successive league clean sheets ended on Saturday; they have now let in three goals in their last ten games.

That defeat at Beşiktaş is Galatasaray's only loss in their last 15 league fixtures (W12 D2).

The Istanbul side have five wins from five home games in all competitions this season.

Mauro Icardi has scored five of Galatasaray's nine league goals in 2023/24.

Icardi has found the net in his last six games, scoring eight goals in that run including Galatasaray's fourth on Saturday. The Argentinian has scored in the last 11 matches he has started for his club, running up 18 goals in those fixtures.

Kerem Aktürkoğlu scored twice on Saturday to make it three goals in his last two league appearances.

Hakim Ziyech made his Galatasaray debut against Samsunspor, setting up Icardi's goal.

Wilfried Zaha has been out with a muscle injury since coming on as a substitute against Kayserispor in the opening match of the season. He resumed training with the team as of 14 September.

Türkiye Under-21 left-back Kazımcan Karataş was called up to the senior squad for the first time for this month's internationals, although he did not feature.

Copenhagen

Summer signings
In: Elias Achouri (Viborg), Birger Meling (Rennes), Jordan Larsson (Schalke), Theo Sander (Aalborg BK), Mohamed Elyounoussi (Southampton), Mateo Tanlongo (Sporting CP, loan)
Out: Emil Rohd (Utrecht), Hákon Arnar Haraldsson (LOSC), Mikkel Kaufmann (Union Berlin), Marko Stamenic (Crvena zvezda), Carlos Zeca (Panathinaikos), Ísak Bergmann Jóhannesson (Fortuna Düsseldorf, loan), Mamoudou Karamoko (Fehérvár, loan), Paul Mukairu (Reading, loan), Daniel Haarbo (Aarhus Fremad, loan), Karl-Johan Johnsson (Bordeaux), Luther Singh (released)

Jacob Neestrup's side have won six of their first eight league games this season, losing only one – 3-1 at home to Silkeborg on 26 August. They were held 2-2 at Nordsjælland on Saturday, a match in which they led twice with Orri Óskarsson and Mohamed Elyounoussi both scoring their second league goals of the campaign, both set up by Elias Achouri.

Winger Diogo Gonçalves has five goals and five assists in all competitions this season, although he has not scored since getting two in a 4-0 home win against Randers on 5 August.

Copenhagen's top Danish league scorer in 2022/23 with 13 goals, Victor Claesson is still to find the net in this season's competition but came off the bench to score twice in extra time at Sparta Praha in the UEFA Champions League third qualifying round second leg on 15 August.

Claesson was also on target in Sweden's 5-0 UEFA EURO 2024 qualifying victory in Estonia on 9 September.

Óskarsson made his Iceland debut as a second-half substitute in a 3-1 EURO 2024 qualifying loss to Luxembourg on 8 September. He played 90 minutes in the 1-0 home win against Bosnia and Herzegovina three days later.

Davit Khocholava has been out with a knee injury since 2 April. He had surgery in early July.

On 5 August Nicolai Boilesen made his first appearance since suffering a a cruciate ligament injury on 16 October 2022 on 5 August, but suffered a relapse in the fifth game of his comeback, on 26 August and was expected to be sidelined for up to a month.

Claesson was featured in both the official Danish Superliga team of the year and the fan's selection; Elias Achouri was included in the latter.

On 6 September Copenhagen announced that goalkeeper Kamil Grabara will join Wolfsburg in July 2024, although the German club also have the option to complete the move in January.