Galatasaray vs Young Boys facts

Galatasaray take on Young Boys needing to overturn a 3-2 first-leg deficit if they are to claim a place in the league phase of the 2024/25 UEFA Champions League at the Swiss side's expense with their play-off tie in the balance.

Filip Ugrinic's late penalty gave Young Boys victory in Bern on 21 August after the visitors looked to have saved a draw. Joël Monteiro struck at the start and end of the first half (3, 45+4) but a double from substitute Michy Batshuayi (66, 72) brought Galatasaray back on level terms only for Abdülkerim Bardakcı's handball in the box to lead to his dismissal and Ugrinic converting the resulting penalty four minutes from time.

That was the first game between the clubs.

Both teams participated in the group stage in 2023/24 although both had to settle for a third-placed finish and a transfer to the UEFA Europa League.

Form guide

Galatasaray

Record vs Swiss clubs: W11 D2 L5 F44 A32
Home record vs Swiss clubs: W7 D1 L0

The first leg was Galatasaray's first meeting with a Swiss club since the 2008/09 UEFA Cup first round, when they beat Bellinzona 4-3 away and 2-1 at home to progress 6-4 on aggregate.

That second-leg victory extended Gala's unbeaten record at home to Swiss visitors to eight games, with seven wins and 24 goals scored.

Galatasaray have featured in the Champions League proper on 17 occasions – one less than all the other Turkish clubs put together.

The Istanbul outfit were third in their group in 2023/24, picking up five points in a section that also included Bayern München, Copenhagen and Manchester United. Their sole win was a 3-2 victory at Old Trafford, although they missed out on a place in the round of 16 after a 1-0 loss in Denmark on Matchday 6.

That sent Okan Buruk's side into the Europa League knockout round play-offs, where they beat Sparta Praha 3-2 at home in the first leg only to lose 4-1 in the Czechia return.

A win against Molde at this stage of the 2023/24 Champions League (3-2 a, 2-1 h) was Galatasaray's first play-off tie in the competition.

The first leg was Cimbom's first European game of the season.

Gala have lost only two of their last 13 home European games, winning seven – although last season's defeat of Sparta is the only victory in four (D2 L1).

Galatasaray claimed their second successive Turkish league title in 2023/24, their 24th triumph overall.

The Turkish team have won six of the 22 UEFA competition ties in which they were beaten in the away first leg, losing 16 including the last three, most recently against PSV Eindhoven in the 2021/22 Champions League second qualifying round (1-5 a, 1-2 h), since the sole previous tie in which they went down 3-2 in the away first game – against Swiss side Sion in the 2007/08 UEFA Cup first round (5-1 h).

Galatasaray’s record in one UEFA penalty shoot-out is W1 L0:
4-1 v Arsenal, 1999/00 UEFA Cup final

Young Boys

Record vs Turkish clubs: W2 D1 L0 F6 A4
Away record vs Turkish clubs: W1 D0 L0

Young Boys' sole previous tie against Turkish opponents before this contest came in the 2010/11 Champions League third qualifying round, when they were paired with Fenerbahçe. Having twice come from behind to salvage a 2-2 draw in the home first leg – Moreno Costanzo levelling for a second time with an 89th-minute penalty – a Henri Bienvenu goal five minutes before half-time was enough for a 1-0 win in Istanbul and a 3-2 aggregate triumph.

YB have reached the Champions League group stage three times – all in the last six seasons.

In 2023/24, the Swiss side finished third in their section behind Manchester City and Leipzig but ahead of Crvena zvezda thanks to a 2-0 home win against the Serbian side on Matchday 5; they had drawn 2-2 in Belgrade, losing their other four games.

Young Boys therefore moved across into the Europa League but their campaign lasted only one tie, a defeat against Sporting CP in the knockout round play-offs (1-3 h, 1-1 a).

Like Galatasaray, the first leg was the Bern club's first European game of the season.

Young Boys reached last season's group stage with a 3-0 aggregate win against Maccabi Haifa (0-0 a, 3-0 h), making it three victories in their seven Champions League play-offs.

The Swiss club are without an away European win since beating Anderlecht 1-0 in the 2022/23 UEFA Europa Conference League qualifying play-off second leg, their third straight victory – all with a clean sheet. Their record since is D3 L2.

YB won their sixth Swiss Super League title in seven years in 2023/24, their 17th championship overall.

There have been 11 previous UEFA ties in which Young Boys won the first leg at home. They were eliminated on four of the first five occasions, all after having one-goal leads overturned, the exception against Debrecen in the 2008/09 UEFA Cup second qualifying round (4-1 h, 3-2 a), but have won the last six such ties, most recently ousting Ferencváros in the 2021/22 Champions League play-offs (3-2 h, 3-2 a). That was their second 3-2 victory in a home first leg, the other coming at the same stage against Tottenham in 2010/11; they lost 4-0 away.

Young Boys' record in three UEFA penalty shoot-outs is W2 L1:
4-2 v Shakhtar Donetsk, 2016/17 Champions League third qualifying round
4-1 v Zimbru Chisinau, 2012/13 Europa League second qualifying round
1-3 v Anderlecht, 2022/23 Europa Conference League qualifying play-off

Links and trivia

Galatasaray midfielder Berkan Kutlu was born in Switzerland and, after two years at hometown amateur side Monthey, signed for Sion in 2018. He made two first-team appearances, both in June 2020, before moving to Türkiye to join Alanyaspor the following month.

Yusuf Demir made 11 Swiss Super League appearances while on loan from Galatasaray to Basel in 2023/24.

Young Boys forward Ebrima Colley – who hit the post in the first leg – spent 2022/23 on loan at Fatih Karagümrük in Türkiye, scoring twice in 30 appearances.

Silvère Ganvoula scored five goals for Elazığspor in the Turkish second division in 2015/16.