Barcelona’s Valverde faces Olympiacos reunion
It is tip opposite bottom on matchday 3 when FC Barcelona acquire Olympiacos FC to a Camp Nou with 6 points already separating a sides in Group D.
• While Ernesto Valverde’s stream organisation have won their initial dual games, scoring 4 goals and surrender none, Olympiacos are still though a indicate and could have their work cut out to get off a symbol in their initial confront with Barcelona.
• The compare pits Valverde opposite one of his former clubs, a Barcelona manager carrying won 3 joining titles in dual spells during Olympiacos.
Match background
Barcelona
• The Blaugrana have won 9 of their 12 fixtures opposite Greek opponents, losing two. They have won all 6 home games, scoring 26 goals and surrender three.
• Barça have won their final 3 matches opposite teams from Greece, all opposite Panathinaikos FC, including home (5-1) and away (3-0) victories in a 2010/11 organisation stage. Lionel Messi got 3 of those goals and was also on aim in a 5-0 thrashing of a Greens in 2005/06.
• The Spanish side are dominant in their final 7 meetings with Greek opposition, home and away, winning six.
• This is Barcelona’s record-equalling 22nd UEFA Champions League organisation theatre campaign, and 14th in succession. They final unsuccessful to strech a final 16 in 2000/01, nonetheless they did not take partial in 2003/04.
• The Blaugrana final unsuccessful to swell over a turn of 16 in 2006/07; their final dual campaigns have been finished in a quarter-finals, by Juventus final deteriorate and by Club Atlético de Madrid in 2015/16.
• The 0-0 pull with Juve in final term’s quarter-final second leg was a usually time former Barcelona manager Luis Enrique unsuccessful to win a home diversion in a UEFA Champions League, carrying formerly mustered 15 true victories.
• Barcelona are dominant in 22 matches during home in a competition, a run that started in Sep 2013 (W20 D2); they were 3-0 victors opposite Juventus on matchday one.
Olympiacos
• The Thrylos have never won in Spain, where their record reads P13 W0 D2 L12.
• They have been beaten on their final 5 trips to Liga teams, many recently going down 4-0 during Atlético in a 2014/15 organisation stage; they final avoided improved in Spain when holding RC Deportivo La Coruña 0-0 in a 2004/05 UEFA Champions League organisation stage.
• Olympiacos succumbed 2-0 during Juventus on matchday two, though have won 3 of their final 5 European divided games, including a initial dual this season. In their final UEFA Champions League organisation campaign, in 2015/16, they won dual of their 3 divided fixtures.
• Olympiacos non-stop this deteriorate with a 5-3 total success over FK Partizan in a third subordinate turn (3-1 away, 2-2 home). They afterwards got a improved of HNK Rijeka in a play-offs, entrance by 2-1 during home and 1-0 away.
• Olympiacos are in a organisation theatre for an 18th time. They lost to Hapoel Beer-Sheva FC in final season’s third subordinate round, a initial time they had missed out on a UEFA Champions League organisation theatre given 2010/11.
• In 2016/17, a Greek side went on to make a UEFA Europa League turn of 16, falling 5-2 on total to Beşiktaş JK.
• The Piraeus bar warranted a place in this season’s subordinate rounds by lifting their 44th Greek championship in 2016/17 – their seventh in a row.
Coach and actor links
• Ernesto Valverde had dual stints as Olympiacos conduct manager (2008/09 and 2010–12), heading them to 3 Super League titles and dual Greek Cups. Assistant manager Jon Aspiazu and aptness tutor José Antonio Pozanko were with him during Olympiacos and have followed him to Barcelona.
• Alberto BotÃa assimilated a girl ranks of Barcelona aged 14, spent 3 years in their B side and done his solitary comparison coming in a final Liga diversion of 2008/09, a 1-1 pull opposite Deportivo La Coruña.
• BotÃa also had stays during Sporting de Gijón (2009–12), Sevilla FC (2012/13) and Elche CF (2013/14). His record opposite Barça was W0 D1 L8.
• Marko Marin and Diogo Figueiras were partial of Sevilla’s UEFA Europa League-winning patrol in 2013/14.
• Vadis Odjidja-Ofoe scored in Legia Warszawa’s 3-3 pull with Real Madrid CF in final season’s organisation stage.
• Mehdi Carcela-González is on loan during Olympiacos from Granada CF.
• Have played in Spain:
Saša Zdjelar (RCD Mallorca, 2017)
Karim Ansarifard (CA Osasuna, 2014/15)
• Has played in Greece:
Aleix Vidal (Panthrakikos FC, 2009)
• Have played together:
Nélson Semedo Mehdi Carcela-González (SL Benfica, 2015–16)
Sergio Busquets Alberto BotÃa (Barcelona B, 2007–08)
Thomas Vermaelen Guillaume Gillet (Belgium)