UEFA Champions League 2008/09 - History - BATE-Juventus – UEFA.com Published: Tuesday 30 September 2008, 2.50CET Likhtarovich's promise to BATE faithful FC BATE Borisov captain Dmitri Likhtarovich's biggest hope before their first UEFA Champions League home game against Juventus is "not to disappoint the fans" in a 40,000 sell-out crowd at Minsk's Dinamo Stadium. FC BATE Borisov captain Dmitri Likhtarovich's biggest hope ahead of their first-ever UEFA Champions League home game against Juventus is "not to disappoint the supporters" in a 40,000 sell-out crowd at the Dinamo Stadium in Minsk. Realistic BATE usually play at their Gradski Stadium in Borisov but, having come through three qualifying rounds, they will bring UEFA Champions League football to Belarus for the first time at the capital's main venue – while much of the country's population watch at home.

Likhtarovich may be playing in his 42nd UEFA competition match, following his group-stage debut in the 2-0 defeat at Real Madrid CF a fortnight ago, yet he is realistic about BATE's chances against the two-time European champions. "Whatever happens, we hope not to disappoint our supporters," Likhtarovich told uefa.com. "Every team plans to get points, but some gain them while others do not." Juve strength Juventus are missing David Trezeguet and Gianluigi Buffon, and have Nicola Legrottaglie doubtful with a thigh problem, but they beat FC Zenit St. Petersburg 1-0 in their Group H opener and Likhtarovich recognises their strength in depth. "Juve are a club with no irreplaceable players," the 30-year-old midfielder said. "So our task will not be any easier. Juventus still have [Alessandro] Del Piero, the true leader of the team. He may not be the same Del Piero we knew seven or eight years ago, but he still scores regularly and makes assists.

Then they have [Mauro] Camoranesi, [Pavel] Nedvěd, and their attack is strong enough even without Trezeguet." Star status Mixing it with the likes of Juventus, Madrid and Zenit is a major step up for BATE, who in their modern incarnation since 1996 have collected four Belarussian league titles. Likhtarovich is not feeling superstar status quite yet, however. "I don't notice any special attention," he said. "I can feel the interest, but we are not really recognised in the streets much – certainly not the way it is at leading European clubs." Respect Del Piero, who should be partnered up front by Amauri on Tuesday, is another for whom this BATE side remain an unknown quantity. "Sorry, but I don't know the BATE players by name," admitted the 33-year-old Bianconeri captain. "However, we have watched videos of them and we know something about them. They are a very young team who have achieved a lot, so I respect them very much. I think it will be a good game." ©UEFA.com 1998-2011. All rights reserved.

Last updated: 30/09/08 22.04CET Belarus proud of BATE Borisov's Champions League success – NDTV Sports © Minsk: Belarus champions BATE Borisov have made a strong start to their Champions League campaign, topping Group F with a maximum of six points, but their success has come as no surprise to club president Anatoly Kapsky. The charismatic 46-year-old Kapsky said that BATE had profited from the hard work put in by a group of like-minded people bent on step by step improving the club's standing in Eurfope. "Our win should not be taken as a complete sensation," Kapsky said after BATE beat 3-1 German giants Bayern Munich on Tuesday. "Our coaches and footballers are true professionals and patriots. Our personnel and players all love football and love their motherland. "Our starting line-up consists of 10 Belarus players and just one foreigner. It's a very rare case in European football.

I think it's very important when the players understand for whom they are playing and who support them." The success achieved by BATE this season is a source of pride for football fans in the east European country, especially as they have done it on a tight budget of eight million euros compared to the 280-million-euro annual budget enjoyed by Russian champions Zenit. BATE players have so far taken their success in their stride. "We have absolutely no reason to rest on our laurels," said BATE midfielder Alexander Pavlov. "Yes, we won two matches and top our group, but any kind of slackness may cost us this lead. That's why we should come into every match with just one aim - to win it." This year Kapsky managed to bring back to BATE the club's most famous player -- midfielder Alexander Hleb. His experience of playing with European giants Arsenal and Barcelona soon established him as BATE new leader. "When we signed the contract with Hleb some people warned me that a player with such a great charisma can easily spoil the chemistry in the dressing room," BATE chief coach Viktor Goncharenko said. "However, everything went on in the best possible way.

Hleb has united the entire team around himself and become a true team leader. And when the entire team have a single aim it's much easier to achieve things." Goncharenko also said that his players were set to extend their winning ways in the Champions League. "Those wins have seriously boosted our self-confidence," he said. "I feel that my team are capable of playing classy football while the players are ready for serious achievements. "But neither myself nor my players want to anticipate the course of events. In these two matches Lady Luck was on our side as we managed to convert our chances into goals and won," he added. "But in the future we need just to be ready to play at our top in every single match. Our next rivals Valencia are a strong and experienced club. But we'll do our best to remain in a positive mood after the match against them." LIVE FC Barcelona - BATE Borisov - Champions League - 4 November 2015 - Eurosport Three minutes of additional time, and Suarez tries an optimistic effort from 40 yards. 89' Incredible that Neymar has broken his season's duck in the Champions League tonight!

88' This has been very comprehensive from Barca - BATE haven't managed to get a foothold in the match at all. 86' CHANCE: The ball drops to Sergi Roberto in the box but his volley hits the side netting. 84' It is not just Neymar breaking records - his strike partner is doing quite well too! 83' GOAL: Barcelona 3-0 BATE Borisov. Barca break after a BATE attack and Suarez sets up Neymar to slide in from close range. 18 of Barca's last 21 goals have come from that pair. 82' Bartra makes room for himself on the edge of the area but his effort, Barca's 16th of the match, is over Chernik's goal. 81' Barca try a short corner through Sergi Roberto. Neymar makes room on the edge of the box, and almost gets on the end of Alves' brilliant return ball. 80' A card for Nemanja Nikolic for a late challenge in Suarez - that was pretty cyncial. 77' Aleksi Rios replaces Maksim Valadzko, BATE's third and final change.

75' Mascherano takes the captain's armband, as Gerard Gumbau replaces Busquets. That's Barca's third and final substitution. 74' Neymar has also provided six assists, more than any other La Liga player this season. 72' BATE also made a change midway through the second half, with Nemanja Nikolic replacing Alyaksandr Valadzko. 71' Marc Bartra, who is on for Iniesta, heads wide from Neymar's floated free-kick. 70' Apologies for the lack of updates - computer problems here. But what you have missed is some showboating from the European champions. 67' Neymar tries an acrobatic volley at the far post and Suarez is just unable to get on the end of it from an acute angle. 60' Alex Hleb, who won the Champions League with Barca in 2009, is on for BATE, replacing Mazalewski. 59' GOAL: Barcelona 2-0 BATE Borisov. Neymar break down the left, and tees up Suarez, who cuts inside Milunovic and pokes the ball past Chernik.

58' Stasevich sets Yablonskiy free down the right but his cross fails to beat the first man. 57' Neymar's flick is just over Alves, then the loose ball from the second phase drops to Munir, but his left-footed shot is gratefully clutched to his chest by Chernik 55' Suarez is almost put through on goal as a BATE clearance hits a yellow shirt and bounces to him in the six-yard box, but Chernik is out to gather. 54' Palyakow is down for treatment after getting a ball straight in the face. BATE manager Aleksandr Yermakovich may make a change here. 52' Gordeichuk at full stretch intercepts Alves' pass in the centre of the penalty area with Suarez hovering. 51' Alves goes in to the book after pulling back Mladenovic on the touchline. 50' SAVE: Chernik makes a great stop to deny Suarez at the far post following Busquets' flicked header at the near post. 49' Neymar wriggles free down the right and then recycles the ball for Iniesta, but his shot deflects wide for a corner.

48' Stasevic goes down on the left-hand edge of the area following a challenge by, I think, Alves, but referee Vad doesn't even up the penalty count... '47 No changes at the break, by the way, though Munir is on for Barca following Rakitic's injury. '46 BATE in yellow kick off from left to right. The Belarus side are still in contention at the Camp Nou - they've looked impressive defensively against the Barca onslaught. 45+2' ter Stegen shows great skill on the right touchline to clear, then Barca break down the right through Alves and Neymar heads just over. 45+1' Mladenovic heads clear Iniesta's cross to the near post - there are two minutes of additional time here. 45' Loose possession from BATE on their edge of their own area, but Alves shoots wide of Chernik's goal from the angle. The Brazilian has yet to score this season. 43' A yellow card for Valadzko for climbing all over the back of Busquets. 42' Neymar is the man in form at the moment - he has looked brilliant tonight. His blind pass to Adriano earlier was wonderful.

41' Six passes at the back from the men in yellow. Fair to say they do not as comfortable in possession as the home side, as Milunovic miscontrols. 40' A rare chance for BATE down the right channel, but ter Stegen saves Stasevich's shot low to his right at the near post. 39' Busquets plays in Suarez, whose awkward shot hits BATE defender Milunovic. The Hungarian referee waves play on - no second penalty for Barca this time. 38' Adriano is unable to control a bouncing ball down the left and his cross floats over Chernik's crossbar. 36' Busquets wins a free-kick in midfield, and Barca have another chance to pass and pass and pass the Belarus side out of the game. 35' 71% possession for Barca so far after 35 minutes. BATE goalkeeper Chernik is up again after treatment. 34' HITS THE POST: Adriano gets beyond Dzyanis Palyakow to run onto Neymar's brilliant blind pass, but his shot hits the outside of the post with Chernik beaten.

33' Alves is down on the touchline and clutching his right ankle and his right knee after being caught by Valadzko. 32' ter Stegen is out of his goal and shows coolness to dribble past Stasevich before clearing. 31' I suspect that the goalline official gave the penalty in the end. It was an excellent call, anyway. 30' GOAL: Barcelona 1-0 BATE Borisov. Neymar waits for Chernik to move, then rolls the penalty to his left, for his first goal in the Champions League this year. 29' Mladenovic climbs over Munir in the area and Barca have a penalty, as referee Istvan Vad points to the spot and shows the yellow card to the BATE defender. 28' SAVE: Neymar chips to an unmarked Munir on the right-hand edge of the area, but Chernik does brilliantly to tip over his volley. 27' Valadzko is unable to control a lofted ball down the left and BATE lose a chance to keep possession. 26' The goal is surely coming.

Suarez this time is tackled on the edge of the area as he attempts a turn, and Chernik can clear. 25' CHANCE: Mladenovic gets a crucial boot in at the near post ahead of Munir to divert Suarez's cushioned volley into the six-yard area away from danger. 24' BATE attack down the left, but Mladenovic is caught offside from Yevgeny Yablonskiy's header. 23' SAVE: Neymar shoots past Milunovic on the edge of the area, but Chernik is down to block. That was a comfortable save, in truth. 22' Adriano tries a foray down the left but Filip Mladenovic is alive to check the Barca attack. 20' There is quite a subdued atmosphere at Camp Nou - the crowd seem to be sitting back expecting to be entertained, rather than getting behind their team. 18' Munir El Haddadi comes on to replace the Croat - 17 days from El Classico, will Rakitic make it back in time? 17' Rakitic is down and in discomfort - he is holding his calf and looking mournfully at the bench.

16' SAVE: Barca goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen makes a good block to beat out Stasevich's drilled free-kick from the edge of the area. 15' BATE have a chance on the edge of the area as Vermaelen brings down Mikhail Gordeichuk with an ugly challenge. 14' SAVE: Chernik is out quickly to block from Neymar after Suarez's inch-perfect ball takes Vital Hayduchyk out of the game. 13' Alves and Roberto link up again, helped by the omnipresent Rakitic. The move switches focus, but Suarez is adjudged offside from Iniesta's pass. 12' Suarez tries to find Neymar in the area after a good one-two down the right between Alves and Sergi Roberto, but the Brazilian is unable to control. The holders are dominant so far. 10' Vermaelen makes an interception in the centre circle. The Belgian is making his sixth competitive appearance for Barca - he has four medals to his name though! 9' Iniesta tries to thread a pass to Suarez on the edge of the area but Milunovic intercepts and BATE can clear.

8' Neymar, in a very natty headband, floats his free-kick well over Chernik's crossbar. 7' Neymar jinks across the edge of the box before he is cynically tripped by Nemanja Milunovic. A free-kick to Barca in a dangerous position. 6' Iniesta finds Suarez down the left but the Uruguayan is unable to find Neymar. 4' Ihar Stasevich sees a shot on goal blocked by Javier Mascherano, in a good spell of pressure from the visitors. 3' CHANCE: Suarez sees an effort from the left channel creep wide of Syarhey Chernick's goal from Neymar's chipped pass into the area. 2' UEFA Champions League 2012/13 - History - BATE-LOSC – UEFA.com Mavuba laid low for LOSC • In Group F's first round of matches, BATE scored three first-half goals at the Grand Stade Lille Métropole through Aleksandr Volodko (6), Vitali Rodionov (20) and Edgar Olekhnovich (43), with Aurélien Chedjou's second-half header scant consolation for LOSC.

• That first victory was swiftly followed by a second for BATE as they beat FC Bayern München by the same 3-1 scoreline at home, before Valencia CF brought them back to earth with a 3-0 away success in Minsk. The return ended 4-2 to the Spanish side to leave BATE third in the section on six points, three behind Bayern and Valencia. • LOSC lost 2-0 at Valencia on matchday two and then suffered a third reverse when Bayern won 1-0 in northern France. The return fixture with the German team two weeks later finished in LOSC's heaviest European defeat as they were overwhelmed 6-1, ending their UEFA Champions League aspirations for the season; they must now win by a greater margin than 3-1 at BATE to have any hope of overtaking their opponents for third place. Previous meetings • The matchday one encounter was the sides' first ever meeting while previous experience of opposition from the other team's country is also scarce. • BATE faced Paris Saint-Germain FC in the 2010/11 UEFA Cup round of 32 and went out on away goals.

The games ended 2-2 at the Dinamo Stadion, Renan Bressan scoring BATE's first goal, and 0-0 in Paris. • LOSC played FC Dinamo Minsk in the 2004 UEFA Intertoto Cup third round, winning 2-1 at home before a 2-2 away draw. Match background • BATE lifted a sixth straight Belarusian title in 2011 – and clinched a seventh on 11 November – to earn a chance of claiming their third appearance in the UEFA Champions League group stage. They overcame FK Vardar 3-2 at home and on aggregate in the second qualifying round, and then relied on an own goal in a 1-1 draw with Debreceni VSC in Belarus before a 2-0 away success. • A 2-0 home win against Hapoel Kiryat Shmona FC put BATE in control of their play-off tie, before a 1-1 draw in Israel sent Viktor Goncharenko's side through 3-1 on aggregate.

• Remaining unbeaten at home in UEFA Champions League qualifying maintained a trend for BATE, who did the same in 2011/12 (two wins, one draw) and 2008/09 (one win, two draws), prior to their two previous group stage appearances. • However, beyond the qualifying rounds it is a different story: including this season, their two preceding group stage campaigns and their UEFA Europa League participations of 2010/11 and 2009/10, BATE's home record is W4 D2 L8. • At home in last term's UEFA Champions League group stage the Belarusian outfit lost 5-0 to FC Barcelona and 1-0 against FC Viktoria Plzeň, and drew 1-1 with AC Milan. • LOSC overcame FC København in the play-offs to make the group stage for the fifth time, losing 1-0 in Denmark before a 2-0 extra-time triumph in the return, the first European match at their new home.

• Les Dogues drew 1-1 at Trabzonspor AŞ in this competition last season, lost 2-1 at FC Internazionale Milano and won 2-0 at PFC CSKA Moskva. Team ties • Rio Mavuba was in the France team that beat Belarus 3-1 in a FIFA World Cup qualifier at the Stade de France on 11 September. Mickaël Landreau was an unused substitute, with Artem Radkov, Bressan, Denis Polyakov and Rodionov all starting for the visitors. Aleksandr Gutor remained on the bench. ©UEFA.com 1998-2011. All rights reserved.

Last updated: 16/11/12 15.49CET Champions League review: Luis Suárez steps up while Bate Borisov stun Roma | Football | The Guardian Champions League review Champions League review: Luis Suárez steps up while Bate Borisov stun Roma We look at some of the major talking points from the second matchday of the 2015-16 Champions League, as well as the best images, stats and more Clockwise (L-R): Luis Suárez put in a talismanic display in the absence of Lionel Messi for Barcelona, Porto’s Yacine Brahimi was a constant thorn in the side of Chelsea, Benfica fans celebrated an unlikely away win at Atlético and Lyon need Alexandre Lacazette to rediscover his form of last season.

Photograph: Getty/AFP/PA Thursday 1 October 2015 04.03 EDT Last modified on Monday 4 April 2016 08.07 EDT Close Lyon need to get Lacazette back to his best If it’s foul and abusive language that you’re after, stick on a tape of players putting the ball out of play so that an obviously malingering opponent can receive treatment. That’s our cue to turn the air blue, every fackin’ time. So although that was not quite the situation when Sergi Darder limped off the pitch during Tuesday’s Lyon-Valencia match , we stood and applauded when Valencia’s Alvaro Negredo eschewed niceties and took a quick free-kick while Lyon were still trying to arrange to get a substitute on to the pitch. That started the move that culminated in Sofiane Feghouli cracking a superb shot into the net from the edge of the area for what turned out to be the winning goal.

Lyon’s president, Jean-Michel Aulas, afterwards bemoaned “an obvious lack of fair play”, though the home team’s manager, Hubert Fournier, admitted that Negredo had been admirably quick-thinking and his own young team naïve. Nine-man Gent claim heroic 1-1 draw with Lyon in Group H Read more Conceding a decisive goal when at a numerical disadvantage rather accentuated Lyon’s failings in the first match, when they were unable to find a winner against nine-man Gent . Now they are bottom of Group H with one point from two matches and more than likely need to beat Zenit St Petersburg at least once if they are to progress from the group stages. If they are to achieve that – and also if they are to hoist themselves up the Ligue 1 table and qualify for the competition again next season, their first full one in their sumptuous new stadium – they need to solve their scoring problems. That involves getting Alexandre Lacazette back to his best. It was hailed as a triumph when Lyon convinced Lacazette to sign a contract extension in the summer despite interest from other clubs but the relationship between player and club has cooled since then.

He has scored just once so far this season – from a penalty – and was hauled off early on Tuesday after a couple of bad misses (though others were also guilty, and Valencia’s goalkeeper, Jaume Domenech, performed brilliantly). He appears to be still bothered by back trouble and admits he has been narked by negative comments made both by Aulas and Fournier. Most of all, though, he is suffering from a deterioration in service caused mainly by Lyon’s unfortunate casualty list. The knee ligament damage to Nabil Fékir, last season’s chief conspirator with Lacazette, has been a particularly cruel loss, and the absence of Clément Grenier has also been felt. Lacazette has yet to strike up similar understandings with the recently-arrived Mathieu Valbuena or Claudio Beauvue, nor the 19-year-old Aldo Kalulu. Survival in Group H then depends on those matches against Zenit, who are a team apt to punish rawness.

PD Brahimi catches the eye again for Porto Although making a mug out of Branislav Ivanovic is not quite the achievement it once was, the Chelsea right-back’s deterioration this year should not detract from another mesmeric performance from Porto’s slinky winger, Yacine Brahimi, who caught the eye with some audacious displays during his side’s run to the quarter-finals last season. Brahimi gave Ivanovic a torrid time with his mazy dribbling on the left wing during Porto’s 2-1 win over Chelsea , creating the opening goal when his jinking run created space for the shot which was palmed into the path of André André by Asmir Begovic. Ivanovic, his blood twisted into thousands of tiny little knots, was made to look like an amateur. He will not want to face the 25-year-old Algerian again in a hurry and if Brahimi continues his progression, it will surely not be long before Europe’s financial heavyweights begin waving wads of cash under Porto’s nose.

JS Suárez steps in to Messi’s shoes While it would be wrong to call Barcelona a one-man team, indeed an insult to the likes of Neymar, Luis Suárez and Andrés Iniesta, there are times when Lionel Messi makes you think that he would not only hold his own if it was just him against 11 opponents, but that they would have a hard time getting the ball off him. He can win a match in the time it takes most of us to get halfway through blinking and so it was natural that his absence with a knee injury unsettled Barcelona and made Bayer Leverkusen believe that they could cause a shock at Camp Nou . Barcelona were vulnerable for long periods against the Germans, falling behind when they failed to defend a corner properly in the first half, and the champions would probably be stuck on one point after two matches if Javier Hernández had not fluffed a chance to double Leverkusen’s lead in the second half. Yet Hernández somehow lifted his effort high over the bar from close range, a miss the Mexican was made to regret when Sergi Roberto equalised, before Suárez suggested that he can play the role of Barcelona’s talisman until Messi returns by sweeping in an emphatic late winner.

Barcelona are going to have to survive without Messi for around eight weeks and here was a timely reminder that Suárez, never one to shy away from a challenge, can be a winning machine as well. JS Further reading Winners and losers Winners … Bate Borisov One of the Champions League’s effects is to help sustain the domestic tyranny of clubs that remain underdogs in Europe. But Bate Borisov are not The New Saints and they regularly make it into the group stages of Europe’s elite tournament and occasionally upset more prestigious opponents, like in 2012 when beat Bayern Munich and Lille. To date, however, the knockout stages have proved a frontier too far and it certainly did not look like being reached this season when the Belarussians were tonked 4-1 by Bayer Leverkusen in their first group match this season. On Tuesday, however, they gave themselves renewed hope thanks to a rousing 3-2 win over Roma .

The challenge now is to build on that, which they failed to do last season when they recorded a memorable home win over Atlethic Bilbao before finishing bottom of the group by losing 7-0 and 5-0 to Shakhtar Donetsk and 6-0 and 3-0 to Porto. Next up for them this season is two games against Barcelona. Gulp! PD Losers … Wojciech Szszesny Sometimes a move to a new club and country proves to be just what a player needed to refocus and revive his career. Sometimes a player just proves to be incorrigible. The evidence so far does not look good for Szczesny, who had a chance to draw a favourable comparison between himself and the goalkeepers that Arsène Wenger decided to rank above him at Arsenal. Reintroduced to the Roma start line-up after dislocating a finger in the first group match, the on-loan Pole performed ridiculously against Bate Borisov . He was found wanting for all three of the home side’s goals, most glaringly when he embarked on an ill-timed ramble around his box and was beaten from 40 yards by Igor Stasevic.

Roma got a creditable draw with Barcelona in the first match but this result rather undid that. PD Stat time OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) PSV Eindhoven’s Jürgen Locadia heads the ball during their 3-2 defeat to CSKA Moscow. Photograph: Sergei Bobylev/ITAR-TASS Photo/Corbis And finally … Can anyone come up with a good reason that explains why goalline technology is not used in the Champions League? It would have been easy for the official behind the goal to miss that David Ospina had patted Kostas Fortounis’s corner over the line during Arsenal’s defeat to Olympiakos and there would have been a major furore if Nicolás Otamendi had not blasted in Manchester City’s equaliser against Borussia Mönchegladbach moments after the officials had failed to spot that Martín Demichelis’s effort was well over the line before it was cleared. Uefa must introduce it as soon as possible. The current state of affairs makes no sense at all.

JS Champions League 2015-16: group-by-group guide | Football | The Guardian Real Madrid were the defending champions last season but were knocked out by Juventus in the semi-final. Photograph: Dani Pozo/AFP/Getty Images Real Madrid European Cup wins 10 Played 216 W126 D42 L48 At a club where Champions League success is demanded as a given, last season’s semi-final exit was a setback. In Rafa Benítez, they have a manager with a proven record of European success but there has been few substantial additions to the squad – and will other egos be OK with Gareth Bale’s central role? Shakhtar Donetsk Played 108 W42 D22 L36 Full of Brazilians the Ukraine side have been a regular and tough fixture on the European scene for a number years but given the level of competition in this group, as well as losing Douglas Costa to Bayern Munich, Mircea Lucescu will struggle to make it out of the group stages this time around.

Paris Saint-Germain Played 70 W36 D14 L20 Moneybags PSG regularly win the French League but struggle to impose themselves in Europe, failing to make it past the quarter-finals in the past three seasons. Have added quality in Layvin Kurzawa and Ángel Di María for significant amounts and heads will roll should Laurent Blanc’s squad underachieve yet again. Malmo Played 28 W11 D5 L12 For a Swedish club to reach the group stages is a success these days but that may be where their achievement ends. Age Hareide has overhauled his squad but are underdogs. Markus Rosenberg, the former West Bromwich Albion striker, is their captain and their most important player. Fixtures 15 Sept PSG v Malmö, Real Madrid v S Donetsk; 30 Sept Malmö v Real Madrid, S Donetsk v Real Madrid; 21 Sept Malmö v S Donetsk, PSG v Real Madrid; 3 Nov Real Madrid v PSG, S Donetsk v Malmö; 25 Nov Malmö v PSG, S Donetsk v Real Madrid 8 Dec PSG v S Donetsk, Real Madrid v Malmö.

Group B Wayne Rooney celebrates with Memphis Depay during Manchester United’s qualifying play-off victory over Club Brugge. Photograph: Catherine Ivill - AMA/Getty Images PSV Eindhoven European Cup wins 1 Played 108 W39 D22 L22 The Eredivisie winners have spent the summer being shorn of some of their best players, notably Memphis Depay (above), who they face in their opening game. How they cope with that will determine their success but PSV have invested wisely in the talented attacking midfielder Gastón Pereiro. CSKA Moscow Played 65 W22 D16 L27 Needed late goals to advance past Porto in the qualification stages but they proved to be tricky opponents for Manchester City last season and top the Russian Premier League after seven games. Their third consecutive season in the group stages but should also be their third consecutive exit at the opening round.

Champions League draw: group-by-group breakdown | Andy Hunter Read more European Cup wins 3 Played 214 W117 D55 L42 Louis van Gaal came through the qualification round with ease but there are problems within his squad – on and off the pitch – and he will be glad that they managed to avoid some of the bigger sides when the groups were drawn. Should have enough to make it out of this round but may struggle thereafter. Wolfsburg Played 6 W2 D1 L3 Last season’s Bundesliga runners-up possess a mean attack and a decent defence, making them the toughest opponents. However, they will be without the masterful Kevin de Bruyne (sold to Manchester City) and it will be interesting to see how Julian Draxler fills the Belgian’s boots, should he be able to stay fit.

Fixtures 15 Sept PSV v Man Utd, Wolfsburg v CSKA; 30 Sept CSKA v PSV (5pm), Man Utd v Wolfsburg; 21 Oct CSKA v Man Utd, Wolfsburg v PSV; 3 Nov Man Utd v CSKA, PSV v Wolfsburg; 25 Nov CSKA v Wolfsburg, Man Utd v PSV; 8 Dec PSV v CSKA, Wolfsburg v Man Utd. Group C Jackson Martínez was a summer signing for Atlético Madrid, the losing finalists in 2014. Photograph: Marcelo Del Pozo/Reuters Benfica European Cup wins 2 Played 86 W33 D22 L31 This is Rui Vitória’s first time managing at this level and over the summer the 45-year-old has seen 10 players leave and 12 arrive. Holding on to Argentina midfielder Nicolás Gaitán is a major boost but fans must fear that disruption to the squad will lead to a struggle to make it into the last 16.

Galatasaray Played 112 W43 D30 L49 Terrible last season, picking up one point, but they might just have enough quality to navigate this stage. Many headlines were devoted to the arrival of Lukas Podolski from Arsenal but José Rodríguez, a 20-year-old midfielder from Real Madrid signed on a free, should bring plenty of talent to the midfield. Atlético Madrid Played 49 W24 D15 L10 It will be some shock if Diego Simeone’s side do not end the group stages in first place. They have engaged in a heavy recruitment programme costing around €100m with the arrival of the defender Stefan Savic and striker Jackson Martínez among others. Could venture far again this year. Astana Played 6 W3 D2 L1 The first team from Kazakhstan to qualify for the group stage and they did so with a 2-1 aggregate victory over Apoel. Coach Stanimir Stoilov admits this campaign is going to be difficult and it is hard to see them finishing in any place other than last.

Fixtures 15 Sep Benfica v Astana, Gala v Atlético; 30 Sep Astana v Gala (5pm), Atlético v Benfica; 21 Oct Atlético v Astana, Gala v Benfica; 3 Nov Astana v Atlético (3pm), Benfica v Gala; 25 Nov Astana v Benfica (3pm), Atlético v Gala; 8 Dec Benfica v Atlético, Gala v Astana. Group D Juventus’ goalkeeper and captain Gianluigi Buffon reacts at the end of last season’s Champions League final, a 3-1 defeat to Barcelona. Photograph: Oliver Lang/AFP/Getty Images Juventus European Cup wins 2 Played 173 W72 D43 L38 Last season’s finalists have managed to keep hold of the coveted Paul Pogba but the loss of Arturo Vidal and Andrea Pirlo will hit the Serie A champions hard – they have started the season poorly. Mario Mandzukic should prove a sensible buy and Paulo Dybala will be exciting to watch but will they get the service they need?

Sevilla Played 17 W11 D2 L5 Los Rojiblancos qualified by virtue of being Europa League champions. Unai Emery has built a talented bunch who rarely lose at home but the exit of Carlos Bacca could prove crucial to their hopes. His replacement, Ciro Immobile, failed to impress at Dortmund last season but perhaps Emery can rekindle his talents. Manchester City Played 25 W10 D6 L9 If they are to escape from this group of death, City will need to improve upon their Champions League home form that reads three wins from their last 11 matches. The high-profile signings of Kevin De Bruyne and Raheem Sterling should help them do so but this will not be easy for Manuel Pellegrini’s side. Borussia Mönchengladbach Played 2 W1 D L1 Gladbach have started the season poorly, losing three games and conceding almost as many goals (eight) as in the whole second half of last season (10). Still, they should not be underestimated. This is a squad that comfortably qualified for an automatic European place and has enough talent to take points.

Fixtures 15 Sep Man City v Juventus, Sevilla v Gladbach; 30 Sept Gladbach v Man City, Juventus v Sevilla; 21 Oct Gladbach v Juventus, Sevilla v Man City; 3 Nov Sevilla v Man City, Gladbach v Juventus 25 Nov Gladbach v Sevilla, Juventus v Man City; 8 Dec Man City v Gladbach, Sevilla v Juventus. Group E Luis Enrique masterminded Barcelona’s victory over Juventus last season and hopes his side will be the first to successfully defend the Champions League. Photograph: Alejandro García/EPA Barcelona European Cup wins 5 Played 214 W126 D49 L39 The question is not if Barcelona can get out of the group but if Barcelona can retain the trophy? Xavi may be gone and Andrés Iniesta may be a year older but the front three of Neymar, Messi and Suárez are still three of the best the world has to offer and Arda Turan is a superb player who should fit in well when he is available to play.

Roma Played 70 W25 D20 L25 Roma got off to flyer this season, beating Juventus in their second Serie A game and igniting fans’ hopes of a proper title challenge. They have made some smart summer buys – especially Mohamed Salah and Edin Dzeko – but it could well be that their eyes are on another prize that is not the Champions League. Bayer Leverkusen Played 73 W32 D12 L29 It would take a brave punter to bet against Leverkusen making it into the next round. Son Heung-min has moved to Tottenham but that might not be a problem for them. They still have the excellent Karim Bellarabi and he can supply Javier Hernández with the type of balls the former Manchester United striker thrives on. Bate Borisov Played 79 W27 D23 L26 Bate relied heavily on their home form in the qualifying rounds to make it this far, winning all three but have yet to win away. The Belarusians have never made it out of the groups in three attempts – and it will not be a case of fourth time lucky.

Fixtures 16 Sep Bayer Lev v Bate, Roma v Barcelona; 29 Sept Barcelona v Bayer Lev, Bate v Roma; 20 Oct Bate v Barcelona, Bayer Lev v Roma; 4 Nov Barcelona v Bate, Roma v Bayer Lev; 24 Nov Bate v Bayer Lev (5pm), Barcelona v Roma; 9 Dec Bayer Lev v Barcelona, Roma v Bate. Group F Pep Guardiola will hope for a better showing this season after his former club Barcelona proved too strong last season. Photograph: Kai Pfaffenbach/Reuters Bayern Munich European Cup wins 5 Played 205 W112 D46 L47 Bayern are arguably the biggest threat to Barcelona retaining their crown. This is likely to be Pep Guardiola’s last season in charge and he will not want to leave without a European trophy to his name. Douglas Costa and Arturo Vidal already look like snug fits within the squad and, as ever, there is plenty of strength in depth.

Olympiakos Played 100 W40 D17 L43 Last season, the Greeks were poor away from home – losing all three games – but beat Juventus, Malmö and Atlético Madrid at home. Now coached by Marco Silva, formerly of Sporting Lisbon, and if he can sort out their travel sickness and get West Bom flop Brown Ideye firing, Arsenal may need to worry. Arsenal Played 147 W76 D33 L38 Arsène Wenger should have enough to make it out of this group but, barring a miracle, it will be in second place behind Pep Guardiola’s indefatigable Bayern. It is hard to be optimistic that they have the firepower to see off Europe’s elite. A second round of 16 exit for the Gunners beckons on current form. Dinamo Zagreb Played 81 W37 D117 L32 The Croatian champions’ repeated Champions League shortcomings – they have never qualified from the group stage in four attempts and are 15 games without a win – suggests Arsenal have little to fear and in their previous CL meeting in the 2006-07 third qualifying round were beaten 5-1 on aggregate.

Fixtures 16 Sep D Zagreb v Arsenal, Olympiakos v Bayern; 29 Sept Arsenal v Olympiakos, Bayern v D Zagreb; 20 Oct Arsenal v Bayern, D Zagreb v Olympiakos 4 Nov Bayern v Arsenal, Olympiakos v D Zagreb; 24 Nov Arsenal v D Zagreb, Bayern v Olympiakos 9 Dec D Zagreb v Bayern, Olympiakos v Arsenal. Group G Chelsea crashed out in the last 16 to PSG last season and José Mourinho will be expected to do far better this time around. Photograph: Matt Dunham/AP Chelsea European Cup wins 1 Played 144 W73 D44 L27 José Mourinho, twice a winner of the Champions League, will want to do better than last season, when Chelsea were eliminated by PSG in the last 16. But with only one major addition in Pedro, they may struggle to go much further. The form of Cesc Fábregas could be key to the Londoners progressing.

Dynamo Kyiv Played 150 W60 D32 L58 Back in the Champions League after a two-year absence, having won the league by 10 points from Shakhtar Donetsk. Financial difficulties in Ukrainian football mean it is not their strongest ever squad but they did manage to hold on to the mercurial Andriy Yarmolenko. Porto European Cup wins 2 Played 164 W69 D44 L51 Favourites to go through the group together with Chelsea with their Spanish manager Julen Lopetegui continuing to work his magic. He has lost some firepower up front with Jackson Martínez joining Atlético Madrid but Iker Casillas is a high-profile addition at the other end of the pitch. The signing of Dani Osvaldo is a gamble. Maccabi Tel Aviv Played 31 W8 D9 L13 The group underdogs will rely on the goals of their captain, Eran Zahavi, who has already scored seven in this season’s campaign as they eliminated Hibernians, Viktoria Plzen and Basel. The manager is Slavisa Jokanovic, who left Watford after gaining promotion to the Premier League last season.

Fixtures 16 Sep Chelsea v Maccabi, Dynamo v Porto; 29 Sept Porto v Chelsea, Maccabi v Dynamo; 20 Oct Dynamo v Chelsea, Porto v Maccabi; 4 Nov Chelsea v Dynamo, Maccabi v Porto; 24 Nov Porto v Dynamo, Maccabi v Chelsea; 9 Dec Chelsea v Porto; Dynamo v Maccabi. Group H André Villas-Boas has announced he will be leaving Zenit at the end of the season but will hope to enhance his reputation with a good Champions League showing. Photograph: SIPA/Rex Shutterstock Zenit St Petersburg Played 47 W19 D12 L16 It is fair to say that things are not going André Villas-Boas’s way. Banned for six matches for assaulting a match official, last week he revealed he is leaving the club at the end of the season. The former Chelsea manager does not think the club invested enough in the summer, but they did keep players such as Axel Witsel and Hulk.

Lyon Played 114 W57 D24 L33 The French side had a good summer as they managed to keep hold of Nabil Fekir (currently injured) and Alexandre Lacazette as well as receiving a hefty sum from Monaco as part of the deal that took Anthony Martial to Manchester United. Hubert Fournier’s side is still young but developing by the year. Valencia Played 100 W46 D29 L25 The club finished fourth in La Liga last season and eliminated Monaco in the play-off round so will be a difficult proposition. Nuno Espírito Santo has an eclectic and well-balanced squad with Shkodran Mustafi, Daniel Parejo and Álvaro Negredo standing out. He also has Phil Neville as his assistant. Gent Played 2 W0 D0 L2 What a week this promises to be for the Buffalos, making their Champions League debut after winning the Belgian league for the first time in their 115-year history. Lyon are the first visitors and the stadium will be bouncing. Hein Vanhaezebrouck’s team could cause an upset at home.

Fixtures 16 Sep Gent v Lyon; Valencia v Zenit; 29 Sept Lyon v Valencia, Zenit v Gent; 20 Oct Valencia v Gent, Zenit v Lyon; 4 Nov Gent v Valencia, Lyon v Zenit; 24 Nov Zenit v Valencia, Lyon v Gent; 9 Dec Gent v Zenit, Valencia v Lyon.

On Sunday 13 September 2015, the statistics for Champions League wins by José Mourinho, PSV, Manchester United and Porto were corrected, along with Gent’s match record Press kits - UEFA Champions League - Media – UEFA.org UEFA Champions League UEFA Champions League: FC BATE Borisov - FC Porto Match press kits UEFA Champions League - 2014/15 SeasonMatch press kits FC BATE Borisov Borisov Arena - BorisovTuesday 25 November 2014 18.00CET (19.00 local time) Group H - Matchday 5 FC Porto UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE OFFICIAL SPONSORS Contents Previous meetings Only this chapter Head to Head Brahimi 5, 32, 57, Martínez 37, Adrián López 61, Aboubakar 76 Home FC BATE Borisov - Record versus clubs from opponents' country UEFA Europa League Kanú 90; Pavlov 52, Skavysh 90+2 19/08/2010 Olekhnovich 56, Renan Bressan 60, Pavlov 70 UEFA

 Europa League Miguel Vítor 68 (og); Saviola 46, Fábio Coentrão 63 17/09/2009 Nuno Gomes 36, Óscar Cardozo 41 FC Porto - Record versus clubs from opponents' country FC Porto have not played against a club from their opponents' country Home Last updated 20/11/2014 18:25CET Match background Only this chapter FC Porto are already qualified from Group H but opponents FC BATE Borisov will be trying to keep alive their diminishing prospects of advancing with them when the sides meet on matchday five.

• The 17 September fixture resulted in Porto's biggest ever UEFA Champions League victory, Yacine Brahimi scoring a hat-trick in a 6-0 win – BATE's heaviest away defeat in Europe. Match background BATE • BATE's two previous Portuguese assignments, both in the UEFA Europa League, brought contrasting results. In the 2009/10 group stage they lost 2-1 at home to SL Benfica and 2-0 away. In the following year's play-offs they won 2-1 away to CS Marítimo after a 3-0 home success. • BATE have conceded 19 goals in their four matches so far, losing 7-0 at home to FC Shakhtar Donetsk on matchday three and 5-0 away two weeks later. Their only win came on matchday two, in the first group stage fixture at their new Borisov Arena, 2-1 against Athletic Club . • The most any team has conceded in the group stage is 22, a record shared by GNK Dinamo Zagreb (2011/12) and FC Nordsjælland (2012/13).

• With three points, BATE are five behind Shakhtar and need to win both remaining fixtures to have any hope of continuing their UEFA Champions League journey. Should they win and Athletic fail to beat Shakhtar, the Belarusian side would be guaranteed a place in the UEFA Europa League round of 32. • In Aleksandr Yermakovich's European bow as coach, BATE overcame KS Skënderbeu in this season's second qualifying round thanks to Anri Khagush's goal in a 1-1 away draw after a goalless home leg. • They then overturned a 1-0 loss at Debreceni VSC by winning the second leg 3-1 despite going behind at home. Another 1-1 away draw paved the way for a 3-0 home win and a 4-1 aggregate success against ŠK Slovan Bratislava in the play-offs. Porto • On matchday two substitute Jackson Martínez struck twice in the closing stages to earn Porto a 2-2 draw at Shakhtar. They followed that with a 2-1 win at home to Athletic before beating the Spanish side 2-0 away .

• That clinched their place in the knockout rounds with ten points, two ahead of Shakhtar who lie in second place. • Porto qualified for the group stage with a 2-0 home win in the play-offs against LOSC Lille. Brahimi and Martínez scored second-half goals to seal a 3-0 aggregate success. • Before the matchday one meeting, Porto had never played a club from Belarus. Match facts UEFA Champions League 2008-09 | Football Wiki | Fandom powered by Wikia UEFA Champions League 2008-09 15 July 2008 - 27 May 2009 Teams 2009–10 → The 2008–09 UEFA Champions League was the 54th edition of Europe 's premier club football tournament and the 17th edition under the current UEFA Champions League format. The final was played at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome on 27 May 2009. It was the eighth time the European Cup final has been held in Italy and the fourth time it has been held at the Stadio Olimpico .

The final was contested by the defending champions , Manchester United , and Barcelona , who had last won the tournament in 2006 . Barcelona won the match 2–0, with goals from Samuel Eto'o and Lionel Messi , securing The Treble in the process. In addition, both UEFA Cup finalists, Werder Bremen and Shakhtar Donetsk featured in the Champions League group stage. Anorthosis of Cyprus and BATE Borisov of Belarus were the first teams from their respective countries to qualify for the group stage. Romanian side CFR Cluj and Russian champions Zenit Saint Petersburg also made their Champions League debuts. Contents [ show ] Qualification A total of 76 teams from 52 UEFA associations (Liechtenstein organises no domestic league competition) participated in the 2008–09 Champions League. Countries are allocated places according to the 2007 UEFA league co-efficient. The spot reserved for the title holder was not used since Manchester United qualified for the group stage as the Premier League (Association 2) champions.

Below is the qualification scheme for the 2008–09 Champions League: Associations 1–3 (Spain, England and Italy) each have four teams qualify Associations 4–6 (France, Germany, and Portugal) each have three teams qualify Associations 7–15 (Romania, Netherlands, Russia, Scotland, Ukraine, Belgium, Czech Republic, Turkey, and Greece) each have two teams qualify Associations 16–53 (except Liechtenstein) each have one team qualify Teams entering in this round Teams advancing from previous round First qualifying round 28 champions from associations 25–53 Second qualifying round 8 champions from associations 17–24 (Switzerland, Norway, Israel, Serbia, Denmark, Austria, Poland and Hungary) 6 runners-up from associations 10–15 14 winners from the first qualifying round Third qualifying round (32 teams) 6 champions from associations 11–16 3 runners-up from associations 7–9 (the Netherlands enter the winners of a series of play-off games rather than the runners-up automatically qualifying) 6 third-place finishers from associations 1–6 3 fourth-place finishers from associations 1–3

 14 winners from the second qualifying round Group stage 10 champions from associations 1–10 6 runners-up from associations 1–6 16 winners from the third qualifying round Knockout phase 8 group winners from the group stage 8 group runners-up from the group stage Group stage Excluded teams Porto On 4 June 2008, a decision was taken to exclude Portuguese champions Porto from this year's competition, after the club was found guilty of bribing referees in the Portuguese Liga during the 2003–04 season .

As a result, Vitória Guimarães were promoted from the 3rd qualifying round to the group stage and Benfica from the UEFA Cup into the 3rd qualifying round. However, after Porto appealed the decision, the decision was referred by UEFA's Appeals Body back to the Control & Disciplinary Body for re-assessment. The meeting to re-assess the situation took place on 16 June 2008, with the decision being reversed and Porto being allowed back into the 2008–09 Champions League. The decision was taken due to Porto's disciplinary process in Portugal not yet being complete. CSKA Sofia Bulgarian champions CSKA Sofia were excluded from the tournament having failed to secure a UEFA licence due to the club being in debt to various government bodies and creditors. Levski Sofia took their place in the 3rd qualifying round. Round and draw dates 2–0 1–0 In the draw for the first qualifying round, teams were divided into two pots, on the basis of UEFA coefficients . The lower pot contained the 14 teams from associations 40–53: none of these teams had a team ranking.

Two of the 14 ties were won by the lower ranked team: Inter Baku (Azerbaijan, country rank 42) beat Rabotnički (Macedonia, 36); and BATE Borisov (Belarus, 40) beat Valur (Iceland, 37). Of the 28 teams in the first qualifying round, two survived as far as the group stage: Anorthosis and BATE Borisov. Each then finished in fourth place. Second qualifying round The first leg matches were played on 29 July and 30 July, while the second legs were played on 5 August and 6 August 2008. Team #1 5–0 2–1 In the draw for the second qualifying round, teams were divided into two pots, on the basis of UEFA coefficients . The higher pot contained teams ranked 166 or higher: so each tie contained exactly one team ranked in the top 166.

Three of the 14 ties were won by the lower ranked team: Kaunas (unranked, coefficient 2.640) beat Rangers (ranked 24, coefficient 66.013); BATE Borisov (unranked, 1.760) beat Anderlecht (56, 41.810); and Anorthosis (ranked 193) beat Rapid Wien (ranked 166). Of the 28 teams in the second qualifying round, Panathinaikos were the only one to qualify for the knockout stage of the competition. Third qualifying round The draw for the third qualifying round took place on 1 August 2008 in Nyon, Switzerland . The first leg matches were played on 12 August and 13 August, while the second leg matches took place on 26 August and 27 August. The losing team of each match are being seeded into the 2008–09 UEFA Cup first round; while the winning teams advance into the UEFA Champions League 2008–09 group stage.

Team #1 1–2 0–1 In the draw for the third qualifying round, teams were divided into two pots, on the basis of UEFA coefficients . The higher pot contained teams ranked 61 or higher. However, the draw was held before the second qualifying round was played, which meant that Kaunas and BATE Borisov effectively moved into the higher pot, replacing the teams they eliminated. Four of the 16 ties were won by the lower ranked team: Anorthosis (ranked 193) beat Olympiacos (ranked 44); BATE Borisov (unranked, coefficient 1.760) beat Levski Sofia (ranked 80, coefficient 32.644); Atlético Madrid (ranked 67) beat Schalke 04 (ranked 22) and Dynamo Kyiv (ranked 74) beat Spartak Moscow (ranked 61).

Group stage Main article: 2008–09 UEFA Champions League group stage The draw for the group stage took place on 28 August 2008 at the Grimaldi Forum , Monaco , prior to the 2008 UEFA Super Cup the following day. The top two teams in each group advanced to the knockout stage, and the third-placed teams entered the round of 32 of the UEFA Cup. Based on paragraph 6.05 in the UEFA regulations for the current season, if two or more teams are equal on points on completion of the group matches, the following criteria are applied to determine the rankings: higher number of points obtained in the group matches played among the teams in question; superior goal difference from the group matches played among the teams in question; higher number of goals scored away from home in the group matches played among the teams in question; superior goal difference from all group matches played; higher number of goals scored in all group matches played; higher number of coefficient points accumulated by the club in question, as well as its association, over the previous five seasons.

Main article: 2008–09 UEFA Champions League knockout stage From the first knockout round through to the semi-finals, clubs play two matches against each other on a home and away basis with the same rules as the qualifying rounds applied. In the last 16, group winners play runners-up other than teams from their own pool or nation. For the draw of the quarter-finals and semi-finals clubs are seeded based on the results in the group and first knockout stage of the current season (eight matches). The draw for the first knockout round was held on Friday, 19 December 2008 in Nyon, Switzerland. The draw was conducted by UEFA General Secretary David Taylor , Giorgio Marchetti, UEFA's director of professional football and Bruno Conti , the ambassador for the final in Rome. The draws for the quarter-finals and semi-finals were both held on Friday, 20 March 2009 in Nyon, Switzerland. The draw was conducted by David Taylor and Bruno Conti. Unlike the first knockout round, teams from the same group or country may be drawn together from the quarter-finals onwards.

Bracket First knockout round The first legs of the first knockout round were played on 24 and 25 February 2009, and the second legs were played on 10 and 11 March. Bayern Munich defeated Sporting CP by 12–1 on aggregate in the first knockout round; the biggest two-leg win in Champions League era. Manchester United 's 2–0 victory against Internazionale in the first knockout round was their 21st consecutive undefeated match, a record surpassing Ajax 's 20 undefeated matches, set between 1985–86 and 1995–96 . The record was extended to 25 matches, ending with a 2–0 defeat to Barcelona in the final. Team #1 1–1 Semi-finals The first leg matches were played on 28 April and 29 April, while the second leg matches were played on 5 May and 6 May 2009. As in 2007–08, the semi-final teams consisted of three Premier League sides and Barcelona. This was the third consecutive season in which three of the four semi-final teams were English.

Manchester United were the first defending champions to reach the semi-finals since the introduction of the first knockout round in the 2003–04 season. Chelsea were knocked out by Barcelona after a highly controversial performance by referee Tom Henning Øvrebø , while Arsenal 's 3–1 loss to Manchester United in the second leg of the semi-finals was the club's first ever defeat at the Emirates Stadium in a European competition.

Team #1 Press kits - UEFA Champions League - Media – UEFA.org UEFA Champions League UEFA Champions League: Athletic Club - FC BATE Borisov Match press kits UEFA Champions League - 2014/15 SeasonMatch press kits Athletic Club Estadio de San Mamés - BilbaoWednesday 10 December 2014 20.45CET (20.45 local time) Group H - Matchday 6 FC BATE Borisov UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE OFFICIAL SPONSORS Contents Previous meetings Only this chapter Head to Head Polyakov 19, Karnitski 41; Aritz Aduriz 45 Home Athletic Club - Record versus clubs from opponents' country Athletic Club have not played against a club from their opponents' country FC BATE Borisov - Record versus clubs from opponents' country UEFA Champions League Jonas 26, Soldado 29 (P), Feghouli 51, 86; Renan Bressan 53, Mozolevski 83 23/10/2012 Soldado 45+1 (P), 55, 69 UEFA Champions League Sergi Roberto 

35, Montoya 60, Pedro Rodríguez 63, 89 (P) 28/09/2011 A.

Volodko 19 (og), Pedro Rodríguez 22, Messi 38, 56, Villa 90 UEFA Champions League Ramos 11, Van Nistelrooy 57 UEFA Cup Cani 24, Ángel López 78 20/09/2007 Nihat Kahveci 6, 50, Senna 18, Tomasson 54; Zhavnerchik 70 Home Last updated 08/12/2014 15:16CET Match background Only this chapter The UEFA Europa League spot in Group H will be decided between Athletic Club and FC BATE Borisov, with the Spanish club a place and a point in front of their opponents ahead of their matchday six meeting in Bilbao. • BATE's 2-1 victory in the reverse fixture ensured the first UEFA Champions League game at the new Borisov Arena ended in a home success. BATE went in front through Denis Polyakov and Aleksandr Karnitski extended their lead before half-time with Aritz Aduriz reducing the arrears.

• Athletic have four points, one more than BATE, so a point will be enough to secure third place; BATE have to win. Match background Athletic • The Spanish club had not faced a team from Belarus before matchday two. • In their sole previous group stage appearance, 1998/99, they finished fourth in their section on six points. They were unbeaten at home with one win and two draws. • The 2-0 defeat by Porto on matchday four means that Athletic have lost two of their last 17 home European matches, winning eight. • Mikel San José's goal midway through the second half gave Athletic a win at FC Shakhtar Donetsk on matchday five to lift them into third place. BATE • Before matchday two, BATE had lost all eight of their home and away contests with Spanish sides, scoring three goals while conceding 25. • In three of their four visits to Spain they conceded four goals, most recently in the 2012/13 group stage when they went down 4-2 at Valencia CF .

They were the first goals they had scored since the first such fixture when they lost 4-1 at Villarreal CF in the 2007/08 UEFA Cup first round. • Having recently claimed the Belarus title for the ninth year in a row, BATE are in the group stage for the fourth time overall and the third time in four seasons. • In qualifying for this season's group stage, BATE drew 1-1 at KS Skënderbeu in the second qualifying round (1-1 on aggregate), lost 1-0 at Debreceni VSC (3-2 aggregate) in the third qualifying round and drew 1-1 at ŠK Slovan Bratislava (4-1 aggregate) in the play-offs. • BATE's three previous group stage campaigns, in 2008/09, 2011/12 and 2012/13, all came under former coach Viktor Goncharenko, who left for FC Kuban Krasnodar in October 2013. • BATE finished third in the group in 2012/13.

In the UEFA Europa League they fell in the round of 32, losing to Fenerbahçe SK 1-0 away and by the same aggregate score. Coach and player links • Egor Filipenko, Vitali Rodionov and Aleksandr Volodko all appeared as Belarus lost 4-0 to Spain in a FIFA World Cup qualifier at the Dinamo Stadium, Minsk, on 12 October 2012. Aleksandr Pavlovets was an unused substitute. • Filipenko and Rodionov started in the 2-1 defeat to Vicente del Bosque's side a year later at the Iberostar Estadi in Mallorca; Volodko was an unused substitute. • Iker Muniain played in Spain's 3-1 win against Belarus , who included Denis Polyakov, Filipenko and Dmitri Baga, in the 2011 UEFA European Under-21 Championship semi-final. Match facts Athletic • Carlos Gurpegi serves a one-game ban on matchday six. Ander Iturraspe and Markel Susaeta are both a yellow card away from suspension.

• Athletic were five games unbeaten in all competitions before a surprise 1-0 defeat by bottom-of-the-table Córdoba CF on Saturday – it was the visitors' first Liga win in over 42 years. • Iñaki Williams, 20, made his Athletic debut against Córdoba. • Athletic managed four points in their first seven top-flight games this term, but have picked up 14 in seven since. Ernesto Valverde's side were 18th in the Liga in early October. • Athletic have conceded just four times in their last seven league games. • Borja Viguera scored a late equaliser at third-tier CD Alcoyano on 2 December as the first leg of their Copa del Rey last-32 tie ended 1-1. • Guillermo Fernández (hamstring, since 9 November) and Xabier Etxeita (adductors, 25 November) have both been sidelined. BATE • Anri Khagush is available after serving a one-game ban on matchday five. Edgar Olekhnovich is a booking away from a suspension.

• If Dmitri Likhtarovich features against Athletic he will equal Aleksandr Hleb's national record of 92 appearances in UEFA club competition. • BATE were not in action at the weekend having concluded their domestic campaign with a 1-1 draw at home to FC Shakhtyor Soligorsk on 30 November. That stretched their record unbeaten league run to 31 games; the previous Belarusian top-flight record high of 29 was set by FC Dvina Vitebsk in 1994/95. • The Belarusian side have this term suffered their heaviest defeats in UEFA competition (home 0-7 v Shakhtar, away 0-6 v Porto). • BATE clinched their ninth successive league title on 9 November after a 4-0 defeat of FC Naftan Novopolotsk lifted them seven points clear of second-placed FC Dinamo Minsk with two games to play. • Nikolai Signevich made his international debut on 15 November as Belarus lost 3-0 to Spain in UEFA EURO 2016 qualifying. He started the 3-2 victory over Mexico three days later in Borisov.

Maksim Volodko made his international debut against Mexico. #athletic+bate+facts 2015-05-29T03:47:57:521

Question: The football club BATE Borisov made their debut in the European Champions League this season, in which country do they play?
Answer: Belarus