Group D strugglers aim for timely boost

Boasting a third coach in as many UEFA Europa League Group D games, Hertha BSC Berlin are bidding to get their campaign on track against an SC Heerenveen side on a run of poor form in Europe.

Previous meetings
• The clubs have never met. Hertha won their only previous home game against Dutch opponents, while both of Heerenveen’s trips to Germany before this match ended in defeat.

Match background
• Hertha have lost only one of their last ten European home games, going down 1-0 against Galatasaray AŞ in last season's UEFA Cup group stage.

• Heerenveen have not won in their last eight European outings since a 5-2 UEFA Cup first round win against Vitória FC on 2 October 2008. They are also without an away win in eight matches on the continent, since beating the same side 3-0 at the identical stage of the 2006/07 edition on 14 September 2006.

Team facts
• Friedhelm Funkel is taking charge of his first UEFA Europa League game with Hertha since being named as the club's new coach. A striker at FC Bayer 05 Uerdingen and 1. FC Kaiserslautern, he has coached Uerdingen, MSV Duisburg, FC Hansa Rostock, 1. FC Köln and – from 2004 until earlier this year – Eintracht Frankfurt.

• Funkel has faced Heerenveen before as coach of Duisburg, with his side beating the Dutch outfit – coached by Foppe de Haan – in the group stage of the 1997 UEFA Intertoto Cup.

• Heerenveen won their maiden Dutch Cup last term but Norwegian coach Trond Sollied became the first Eredivisie dismissal of the season in August following a poor start to their domestic campaign. He has been replaced by erstwhile youth-team trainer Jan de Jonge, formerly a striker with FC Groningen, Heerenveen and FC Emmen.

• De Jonge will remain in charge until the winter break, when his position will be reconsidered.

• Hertha have had a different coach for each of their Group D games. Lucien Favre was in charge for the 1-1 draw against FK Ventspils, while his stand-in replacement Karsten Heine was on the bench for the 1-0 loss at Sporting Clube de Portugal.

• Heerenveen's Igor Djurić and Hertha's Gojko Kačar were team-mates at Serbian side FK Vojvodina from 2004 to 2008. Both players were born in Novi Sad.

• Heerenveen's Michal Papadopulos (Bayer 04 Leverkusen and FC Energie Cottbus) and Gerald Sibon (1. FC Nürnberg) both boast Bundesliga experience.

• Sibon starts this game having had more shots on goal than any player since the start of the group stage, with nine efforts.

• Should Heerenveen concede four at Hertha, it would bring their total of goals shipped in UEFA club competition to 100 from 74 games.

• The two sides meet again in the Netherlands on 5 November for Matchday 4.