Fenerbahçe v Zenit background
Fenerbahçe and Zenit flog off a turn of 32 with an intriguing initial leg in Istanbul, a Turkish bar resuming their European debate underneath a new manager with a initial ever tie opposite Zenit, a winter leaders of a Russian Premier League.
• Fenerbahçe’s autumn struggles in a Turkish Süper Lig were counterbalanced by a prolongation of their UEFA Europa League tour into a spring, nonetheless they finished with 8 points, a lowest sum of any of a 24 competent teams and 6 points behind territory winners Dinamo Zagreb. Like a Turkish club, Zenit hermetic their turn of 32 berth with a compare to spare, 9 of a 11 points that enabled them to tip Group C being purebred during home.
Previous meetings
• Fenerbahçe are dominant in Istanbul opposite Russian visitors (W2 D2). This is a third UEFA Europa League turn of 32 in a quarrel that they have been drawn opposite Russian opposition; they degraded Lokomotov Moskva 3-1 on total in 2015/16 (2-0 home, 1-1 away) yet went out to Krasnodar 12 months after (0-1 away, 1-1 home).
• Zenit have played usually one UEFA tie opposite a Turkish club, a 1-1 pull in Istanbul opposite Beşiktaş in their final tie of a 2005/06 UEFA Cup organisation theatre that clinched their place in a knockout phase.
Form guide
Fenerbahçe
• Fenerbahçe finished runners-up in a Turkish joining and crater final season, Galatasaray circumference them out in a Süper Lig and unheralded Akhisar intolerable them with a 3-2 crater final win. They non-stop their 2018/19 European debate with a UEFA Champions League third subordinate turn better by Benfica (0-1 away, 1-1 home), that sent them directly into a UEFA Europa League organisation stage.
• The Istanbul club’s fifth organisation entrance finished like a prior four, with swell into a knockout phase, nonetheless they had to redeem from an opening 4-1 better divided to Dinamo Zagreb. A span of 2-0 wins during home to Spartak Trnava and Anderlecht eventually valid wilful during a Group D debate in that Dutch manager Phillip Cocu was sacked after 4 months in charge.
• Fenerbahçe’s many successful UEFA Europa League journey was in 2012/13, when they reached a semi-finals. They degraded BATE Borisov (0-0 away, 1-0 home) in that turn of 32; in 2009/10 they were knocked out during this theatre by LOSC Lille (1-2 away, 1-1 home). Their turn of 32 record in Istanbul is therefore W2 D2.
• Fenerbahçe claimed 7 points during home in this season’s organisation stage, gripping purify sheets in all 3 matches. They are dominant during home in a UEFA Europa League correct in their final 11 fixtures, winning eight. The Yellow Canaries had scored in 17 unbroken European home games until they drew 0-0 with Dinamo Zagreb on matchday six.
Zenit
• Fifth in a 2017/18 Russian Premier League, Zenit’s 12th unbroken European debate began in a UEFA Europa League third subordinate round, where they staged an startling second-leg quip opposite Dinamo Minsk in St Petersburg, winning 8-1 after additional time in response to a startle 4-0 first-leg better in Belarus. Their play-off attainment over Molde was also a parsimonious call, a 3-1 home win preceding a 2-1 detriment in Norway.
• Zenit’s third unbroken entrance in a UEFA Europa League organisation stage, and fourth in all, confirmed their ideal record of subordinate for a knockout proviso as territory winners – a attainment achieved for a initial time in 2010/11. They degraded Slavia Praha, Bordeaux and København in St Petersburg, all by one-goal margins, and drew 1-1 in both Denmark and France, ceding their dominant record usually on matchday 6 when, already through, they mislaid 2-0 during second-placed Slavia.
• This is a Russian side’s sixth entrance in a turn of 32. They have won 4 of their 5 ties, a usually peck entrance opposite Anderlecht dual years ago (0-2 away, 3-1 home). Their victories have been opposite Young Boys in 2010/11 (1-2 away, 3-1 home), Liverpool in 2012/13 (2-0 home, 1-3 away), PSV Eindhoven in 2014/15 (1-0 away, 3-0 home) and Celtic in 2017/18 (0-1 away, 3-0 home). While they have won all 5 fixtures in St Petersburg, they have mislaid 4 divided legs.
• Zenit’s 1-1 pull during København on matchday one finished a run of 4 unbroken European divided defeats, yet they are still but a win in 7 (D2 L5) going behind to a 3-1 attainment during Real Sociedad on matchday 6 of final season’s UEFA Europa League. In a competition’s knockout proviso they have played 10 divided fixtures and mislaid nine, a usually difference that turn of 32 win in Eindhoven 4 years ago. They have never scored some-more than one idea in a divided leg of any prime tie in this competition.
Links and trivia
• LuÃs Neto played for Fenerbahçe on loan from Zenit final season, creation 13 joining appearances.
• Martin Škrtel represented Zenit between 2004 and 2007, scoring 3 goals in 74 joining appearances. He won a joining in 2007.
• Å krtel and Zenit’s Robert Mak both play for Slovakia.
• Fenerbahçe’s French midfielder Mathieu Valbuena has also played in Russia, creation 29 joining appearances and scoring 6 goals for Dinamo Moskva between 2014 and 2015, where his team-mates enclosed stream Zenit contingent Yuri Zhirkov, Aleksandr Kokorin and Christian Noboa.
• Fenerbahçe’s Roman Neustädter is a Russia team-mate of several Zenit players. He scored opposite Turkey in a 2-0 home win in a UEFA Nations League final autumn, as did Zenit’s Artem Dzyuba in Russia’s progressing 2-1 divided attainment in Trabzon.
• Islam Slimani scored a idea that helped Algeria bind a 1-1 pull opposite Russia and swell to a 2014 FIFA World Cup turn of 16 during their opponents’ expense. Oleg Shatov and Kokorin featured for Russia.
• Mauricio Isla (Fenerbahçe) and Claudio Marchisio (Zenit) played together during Juventus from 2012–14.
• Zenit’s 6 goals in a organisation theatre was a lowest series available by any of a 12 territory winners. The usually group to validate with fewer goals were their Group C rivals Slavia Praha, who scored four.
The coaches
• One of Turkey’s many gifted and charismatic coaches, Ersun Yanal was reappointed by Fenerbahçe on 14 Dec 2018 – 3 days before his 57th birthday – to reinstate halt manager Erwin Koeman. His initial spell, in 2013/14, valid rarely successful as he led them to a Süper Lig pretension before vacating suddenly a following summer and resurfacing during Trabzonspor. His extensive career story as a manager includes a army in assign of a Turkish inhabitant group from Apr 2004 to Jun 2005.
• Sergei Semak took over as Zenit’s conduct manager in May 2018 after an considerable 18-month reign during FC Ufa that led to a club’s initial ever European qualification. The former Russia general midfielder had formerly worked as an partner manager during Zenit after finale his personification career there. His rise years on a margin came during CSKA Moskva, where he skippered a bar to Russian joining and crater triumphs, yet he left for Paris Saint-Germain mid by a 2004/05 deteriorate in that a Moscow bar won a UEFA Cup.