AZ aim to end away travails at Metalist
Friday, September 16, 2011
Article summary
AZ Alkmaar have not won in 12 away games in Europe but will hope to put that record behind them as they travel to a FC Metalist Kharkiv side who have never beaten Dutch opposition.
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FC Metalist Kharkiv entertain AZ Alkmaar in UEFA Europa League Group G, with both sides having won their opening fixtures on matchday one.
Previous meetings
• The sides are meeting for the first time in UEFA competition.
• Metalist have played four games against Dutch sides with the record W0 D2 L2 (W0 D1 L1 at home). They met PSV Eindhoven in last season's UEFA Europa League group stage, losing 2-0 at home but drawing 0-0 away. They have yet to score a goal against a Dutch team.
• AZ's five games against Ukrainian sides ended W3 D0 L2 (W2 D0 L1 in Ukraine). They came up against FC Dynamo Kyiv in last season's group stage, but lost 2-1 at home and 2-0 away.
Match background
• Metalist have not scored in their last two home games in Europe.
• Their record at home in UEFA Cup and UEFA Europa League group stage home games reads W3 D1 L1, with PSV the only team to beat them at home in this phase of the competition.
• AZ have not won in 12 away games in Europe (four draws and eight defeats) since a 1-0 UEFA Cup victory at FC Paços de Ferreira on 20 September 2007.
Team facts
• AZ's Finnish defender Niklas Moisander turns 26 on the day of the game. He has twice been an unused substitute in UEFA games on his birthday; both of them 1-1 draws.
• His Finland side drew 1-1 against Lithuania in a UEFA European Under-16 Championship qualifier on his 15th birthday in 2000, and AZ drew 1-1 with R. Standard de Liège in the UEFA Champions League on his 24th birthday in 2009.
• Metalist coach Myron Markevich is a keen student of coaching – he has made trips to study Fabio Capello, Christoph Daum and Carlo Ancelotti – and is also an able pianist. He was named Ukraine coach on his 59th birthday, but stepped down in August 2010 to focus on Metalist.
• AZ boss Gertjan Verbeek spent most of his playing career as a defender at sc Heerenveen barring a season on loan at Heracles Almelo. He has twice coached Heracles either side of stints in charge of Heerenveen and (very briefly) Feyenoord. AZ brought him in at the start of the 2010/11 campaign.
