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Galatasaray looking to repay Sturm debt

Galatasaray AŞ host SK Sturm Graz in UEFA Europa League Group F with a score to settle against their Austrian visitors following their two encounters eight years ago in the UEFA Champions League.

Galatasaray looking to repay Sturm debt
Galatasaray looking to repay Sturm debt ©UEFA.com

Galatasaray AŞ host SK Sturm Graz in UEFA Europa League Group F looking to build on their opening victory at Panathinaikos FC.

Previous meetings
• The clubs met in the 2000/01 UEFA Champions League group stage, with Sturm winning 3-0 at home and drawing 2-2 in Istanbul.

• The squads for the latter game (07/11/00) at the Ali Sami Yen were:
Galatasaray: Kerem İnan, Bülent Korkmaz, Popescu, Emre Belözoğlu, Okan Buruk, Járdel (Marco Mixirica, 90), Hagi (Serkan Aykut, 67), Hasan Şaş (Faruk Atalay, 86), Fatih Akyel, Hakan Ünsal, Ergün Penbe.
Sturm: Sidorczuk, Neukirchner, Schupp (Korsos, 61), Reinmayr (Yuran, 46), Vastic, Prilasnig, Mamedov, Schopp, Minavandchal (Strafner, 87), Kocijan, Fleurquin.

• Current Sturm coach Franco Foda was an unused substitute in both legs.

Match background
• Galatasaray competed in the final two UEFA Cup group stage campaigns, progressing from their section on both occasions. Sturm never competed in the UEFA Cup group stage.

Team facts
• Galatasaray coach Frank Rijkaard's only experience of Austrian opposition came in three international games for the Netherlands. His side drew 1-1 at home against Austria in a FIFA World Cup qualifier in 1985. He played later in two friendlies against them, losing 3-2 in 1990 before finding the net in a win by the same scoreline two years later.

• German coach Foda has been with Sturm for over a decade, having joined the club as a defender in 1997. The former 1. FC Kaiserslautern, Bayer 04 Leverkusen and VfB Stuttgart player counts his son Sandro Foda – a midfielder – among his players at Sturm.

• Sturm's Bosnian midfielder Samir Muratović played in Turkey with Kocaelispor in the 1998/99 season.

• Sturm defender Gordon Schildenfeld played in Turkey with Beşiktaş JK during the latter part of the 2007/08 season, during which time he was a team-mate of Galatasaray counterpart Gökhan Zan.

• Galatasaray's Milan Baroš and Harry Kewell took on Sturm's neighbours Grazer AK as Liverpool FC players, with their side winning 2-0 in Graz before losing 1-0 at home in a 2004/05 UEFA Champions League third qualifying round tie.

• Galatasaray host FC Dinamo 1948 Bucureşti on Matchday 3, while Sturm visit Panathinaikos on the same night, 22 October.