Galatasaray continue to impress

Presented with the unenviable task of succeeding Fatih Terim at the Ali Sami Yen stadium, coach Mircea Lucescu has guided Galatasaray SK to UEFA Super Cup success and the second group stage of the UEFA Champions League on two occasions to enhance their reputation as one of the continent's most respected clubs.

Outstanding home form
Notoriously bad travellers, Galatasaray have won just three of their 25 Champions League games away from home. Their European success is built on their outstanding form in Turkey: only three of the last 12 visitors to Istanbul have left with a point, with first group stage opponents S.S. Lazio and PSV Eindhoven among the nine teams to suffer defeat.

Summer of change
It was a summer of change in Istanbul, with Fatih Akyel, Emre Belözoglu, Okan Buruk and Ümit Davala joining Brazilian striker Mario Jardel in exiting the club. Their departures could easily have unbalanced the side but Lucescu brought wisely - Ümit Karan, Berkant Göktan, Ayhan Akman, Pavel Horváth and Sébastien Pérez all arrived - and speedily assimilated them into the counterattacking style he favours.

Favoured system
Lucescu is a firm advocate of the 3-5-2 system, with the midfield encouraged to push on and support the regular strike force of Hasan Sas and Ümit. However, the coach is not averse to playing 4-5-1 away from home, a tactic that was used to devastating effect in the Camp Nou for 45 minutes last time out.

QUALIFYING ROUNDS: Revered company

Back in July, Galatasaray found themselves in revered company alongside three former European champions in FC Porto, FC Steaua Bucuresti and FK Crvena Zvezda as the draw for the second qualifying round took place.

Brushed aside
They were paired with KS Vllaznia but the Albanian outfit posed little threat as they were brushed aside 6-2 on aggregate, Ümit scoring in both legs. That left PFC Levski Sofia standing between Galatasaray and a place in the lucrative group stages of the competition. Largely thanks to Serkan Aykut's goal in a 1-1 draw in Bulgaria, Lucescu's side celebrated a 3-2 aggregate success.

FIRST GROUP STAGE: On a knife-edge

Galatasaray went into their opening match at home to Lazio with every reason to feel confident: in the last five seasons they had entertained Italian opposition on five occasions - winning three times and drawing twice. They upheld that record with a 1-0 win, Ümit again on target.

Down to earth
They were brought down to earth with a 3-1 defeat in Eindhoven but were level on points with the Dutch side at the group's midway point after Sergen Yalçin secured another single-goal victory, away to FC Nantes Atlantique. A home draw with Nantes next time out coupled with a 1-0 defeat away by a resurgent Lazio side left the group on a knife-edge going into the final match. Nantes saw off the Roman side to clinch top spot, leaving Galatasaray to claim second place with a 2-0 home win, Sergen and Arif Erden the scorers.

SECOND GROUP STAGE: Wasted opportunities

Galatasaray's second group stage story thus far is surely of what could have been. Denied a home victory by AS Roma midfield player Emerson da Rosa's overhead kick deep into stoppage time in their opening game, Lucescu's side were then involved in an amazing match in FC Barcelona's Camp Nou stadium.

Nightmare second half
Ümit opened the scoring in the fifth minute, before Andrés Fleurquín made it two four minutes from half-time. However, a nightmare second half saw Javier Saviola score either side of the dismissal of Capone. Hakan Ünsal also saw red late on meaning Lucescu will be without both of those players for the trip to Liverpool FC in February.

REMAINING GAMES: All to play for

Galatasaray qualified for this stage with the lowest goals total of all the 16 teams - just five - and they will need to improve on that statistic to emerge from a group of this quality. Avoiding defeat at Anfield stadium would surely end Liverpool's challenge and then Lucescu would be looking to beat the English side at home and Barcelona in their final game, and maybe sneak a draw in Rome in between.

THE COACH: Mircea Lucescu

Terim's dismissal from Milan AC just months into his contract in Italy led to persistent speculation in Turkey that he was set for a return to Galatasaray, whom he led to the UEFA Cup in 2000. That would have been hard on Lucescu, who has proved an excellent replacement for the revered Terim.

Hat-trick of titles
A former coach of the Romanian national team, and mentor to Gheorghe Hagi, Lucescu cut his managerial teeth at FC Corvinul Hunedoara in his homeland before winning the title at FC Dinamo Bucuresti in 1990. A decade later he repeated that feat with their city rivals FC Rapid Bucuresti and, with Galatasaray clear at the top in Turkey, looks capable of completing a memorable hat-trick this season.

Standing by his players
Lucescu may be a disciplinarian who sets exacting standards for his players but he is also renowned for his fairness and recently came into conflict with the club's board, calling their decision to fine the first-team squad "unacceptable" after a defeat by MKE Ankaragücü

THE PLAYER: Sergen Yalçin

Although Ümit and Hasan Sas could lay claim to being the club's star turn, Sergen's outstanding displays in the Champions League tip the balance in his favour. The 29-year-old has proved himself an able successor to Hagi in the club's midfield, with his close control and precise distribution making him an ideal link between the midfield and the front line.

Goals and assists
An ever-present in this season's Champions League, his two goals and two assists in the first group stage played no small part in Galatasaray's progress to the next phase. The first player to play for the country's four leading clubs, Sergen's reputation as one of Turkish football's loose cannons seems to have been put behind him as his game continues to mature.

DOMESTIC FORM: Well placed for success

Three days after securing their place in the last 16 of the Champions League Galatasaray lost 5-0 away to Bursaspor. Not only was it their first league defeat of the season but also first match in which they had failed to score. A swift return to form followed and the club are now well placed to wrest the title crown back from rivals Fenerbahçe SK.