Opportunity knocks for City against CSKA

After two seasons of disappointment in the UEFA Champions League, Manchester City FC have a place in the last 16 in sight when they host PFC CSKA Moskva on matchday four.

• After beating CSKA 2-1 in Russia last time out, City will secure their place in the last 16 for the first time if they beat CSKA and FC Viktoria Plzeň fail to beat FC Bayern München in the day's other Group D game.

• Conversely, given they only trail their hosts by three points, Leonid Slutski's CSKA could climb above City if they win in Manchester, although that may be easier said than done. Not only have the visitors never won in England before but, prior to Bayern's win at City on matchday two, the Premier League club had gone 20 games unbeaten at home in UEFA competition.

Match background
• While this is City's first home meeting with Russian opposition, CSKA have visited England four times in the past decade – earning a draw on each of their last three visits.

• CSKA's most recent trip was to Old Trafford for a 3-3 draw with Manchester United FC in the 2009/10 UEFA Champions League group stage, which took place on 3 November 2009 – a fortnight after a 1-0 home loss to United. CSKA actually led 3-1 entering the last six minutes – Alan Dzagoev, Miloš Krasić and Vasili Berezutski scoring – and the eventual point gained helped them progress in second place behind City's neighbours.

• Besides goalscorers Dzagoev and Berezutski, five other current CSKA players featured that night at Old Trafford: Igor Akinfeev, Aleksei Berezutski, Sergei Ignashevich, Georgi Schennikov and Elvir Rahimić.

• CSKA's overall away record against English sides is W0 D3 L1.

• Though beaten in their last away fixture at Bayern on matchday one, CSKA have lost just three of their last 12 away games in UEFA competition, winning six.

• The Russian club lost the 2005 UEFA Super Cup 3-1 to Liverpool FC in Monaco.

Team ties
• As coach of Villarreal CF in 2007/08, Manuel Pellegrini was eliminated in the UEFA Cup round of 32 by FC Zenit, losing 1-0 in St Petersburg prior to a 2-1 second-leg home win.

• Álvaro Negredo and Jesús Navas were in the Sevilla FC side beaten by CSKA in the 2009/10 UEFA Champions League round of 16. Negredo struck the opening goal in a 1-1 first-leg draw at Luzhniki Stadium but CSKA prevailed 2-1 in Spain.

• Another City striker, Edin Džeko, also hit the opener for his team, VfL Wolfsburg, in a 2-1 defeat at CSKA in the group stage that same season.

• Fernandinho faced CSKA in the 2008/09 UEFA Cup round of 16, playing in a 1-0 first leg defeat in Moscow but then scoring a penalty as Shakhtar turned the tables with a 2-0 triumph in Ukraine.

• Akinfeev, Ignashevich, Elvir Rahimić and the Berezutski brothers were in the CSKA side that held an Arsenal FC team including Gaël Clichy 0-0 in London in the 2006/07 UEFA Champions League group stage. In the same section, Vincent Kompany appeared in Hamburger SV's 1-0 reverse away at CSKA.

• Samir Nasri appeared as a substitute in the Olympique de Marseille side that won 2-1 at CSKA in the 2005/06 UEFA Cup group stage. Akinfeev, Ignashevich, the Berezutski brothers and Rahimić were all playing for CSKA.

• Džeko scored for Bosnia and Herzegovina in a 4-1 home victory over Aleksandrs Cauņa's Latvia in a 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifier in September.

• David Silva scored past Akinfeev in Spain's 3-0 success against a Russia side also including Ignashevich and Vasili Berezutski in the UEFA EURO 2008 semi-finals.

• Ignashevich and the Berezutskis helped Russia beat Joleon Lescott and Micah Richards' England 2-1 in a UEFA EURO 2008 qualifier in Moscow in October 2007.

• Sergio Agüero scored as Argentina beat Russia 3-2 in an August 2009 friendly in Moscow.

• Mark González played for Liverpool in a 0-0 draw at City in 2006/07.

• Zoran Tošić and Stevan Jovetić were team-mates at FK Partizan in 2007/08. Tošić later made five substitute appearances during a short stay at City's neighbours United.

• Tošić is an international team-mate of Aleksandar Kolarov and Matija Nastasić with Serbia, as are Seydou Doumbia and Yaya Touré (Ivory Coast), and Rahimić and Džeko (Bosnia and Herzegovina).