Valencia seek revenge on Rosenborg

A rare UEFA Champions League victory for Rosenborg BK in the fixture between these sides in Norway on 24 October means the pressure is on Valencia CF to win the return match and with both teams' coaches having since left their respective positions, an intriguing dimension has been added to this Group B game. The Spanish side trail second-placed Rosenborg by a point and know a third successive defeat in the competition could seriously hinder their chances of going through.

• It all began so well for Valencia when David Villa's second-half strike earned them a victory away to FC Schalke 04 on Matchday 1. However that was followed by a home defeat against Chelsea FC and then the 2-0 reverse in Trondheim where Yssouf Koné and Vidar Riseth scored in an eight-minute spell shortly after half-time to boost Rosenborg's challenge.

• It was only their second victory in their last 22 UEFA Champions League outings but it could not prevent coach Knut Tørum from losing his job the following day, the price paid for a disappointing domestic campaign. Trond Henriksen will be in charge for this game and also the rest of 2007.

• The same game was also Quique Sánchez Flores' last European fixture in charge at Valencia after he was dismissed following their 3-0 Primera División defeat by Sevilla FC, the Spanish side's next match after the Matchday 3 meeting with Rosenborg.

• It was also Valencia's first match against Norwegian opponents in UEFA competition while Rosenborg have experienced several group stage contests with teams from Spain. Their visits have invariably ended in disappointment, the seven fixtures resulting in five defeats and two draws. Those losses have tended to be fairly convincing as well: three by the margin of 4-1 (against Real Madrid CF twice and RC Deportivo La Coruña).

• The two 4-1 Madrid victories featured contributions by players now currently plying their trade with Valencia. Fernando Morientes scored in the 1997/98 fixture while Iván Helguera played when the sides met in the 2005/06 group stage.

• The two visits to Spain in which Rosenborg managed to avoid defeat both ended 1-1. They came at the home of Athletic Club Bilbao in the 1998/99 UEFA Champions League and at Deportivo Alavés in the 2000/01 UEFA Cup third round.

• Should Rosenborg complete the "double" over the 2000 and 2001 UEFA Champions League runners-up it will be only their second success in 21 games on the road in the competition. They began this campaign with an away fixture and emerged with great credit following a 1-1 draw at Chelsea FC in what proved to be José Mourinho's final game in charge of the London club.

• Miika Koppinen put the visitors ahead before half-time before Andriy Shevchenko snatched an equaliser. Hopes were high that Rosenborg could then build on that result at home to FC Schalke 04 but the German side scored two second-half goals to claim their first points in the campaign.

• The other game in Group B features Schalke at home to Chelsea. The visitors can secure a place in the next stage should they win and Rosenborg do the same at Mestalla.