Beşiktaş poised for Porto poser

Beşiktaş JK have taken part in European club competition in each of the last five seasons but have never faced a home fixture against opponents from Portugal. Matchday 2 in the UEFA Champions League provides the opportunity for a small slice of history as they welcome FC Porto to the Inönü Stadium.

• The Turkish side's first Champions League group game for four seasons ended in disappointment on Matchday 1 as they were defeated 2-0 by Olympique de Marseille. Porto endured a frustrating evening after being held to a 1-1 draw by Liverpool FC even though the visitors were down to 10 men from the 58th minute.

• Beşiktaş’s only match-up with Portuguese opposition came in the group stage of the 2005/06 UEFA Cup when a 3-1 victory over Vitória SC didn’t prove sufficient to advance in the competition.

• In their fourth participation in the UEFA Champions League, coach Ertuğrul Sağlam’s team will be aware that poor home form has stopped them reaching the knockout rounds before.

• In their last two campaigns, 2000/01 and 2003/04, they have won just two of the six home ties, against FC Barcelona and AC Sparta Praha respectively.

• Like the Süper Lig runners-up, Porto have only faced one Turkish team in competitive matches before, a UEFA Cup fourth round tie in 2002/03 with Denizlispor. They won 6-1 at home and drew 2-2 away. The As Antas leg was a remarkable affair because with a half-time score of 0-0 there was no hint of the goal extravaganza that was to follow. It underlined the ability of José Mourinho’s side who went on to lift the trophy at the end of the season with a 3-2 extra-time win over Celtic FC in Seville.

• In last season’s competition Porto made it to the first knockout round where they succumbed to Chelsea FC 3-2 on aggregate. They lost 2-1 in London after taking a surprise lead through Ricardo Quaresma.

• Jesualdo Ferreira's team did well on their travels last season, following a 2-0 reverse against Arsenal FC by taking maximum points from their next two away fixtures in Group G, beating Hamburger SV 3-1 and PFC CSKA Moskva 2-0. Those results helped them finish on eleven points in the section, the same as Arsenal who took top spot through a superior head-to-head record.

• Liverpool play host to Marseille in the other game in Group A.