Valencia target Rangers win to get back on track

Valencia CF welcome Rangers FC to Mestalla aiming to show their previous home result in Group C was a mere blip.

• Unai Emery's men surrendered a 12-match unbeaten run at home in Europe when losing to Manchester United FC on Matchday 2. Rangers have never won in Spain but have a fine recent record on their travels and a repeat of the sides' 1-1 Matchday 3 draw in Glasgow would keep Walter Smith's side second in the section.

Previous meetings
• Rangers and Valencia first met in the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup second round in 1979/80 with John Greig, now a club director, in charge of the Scottish side.

• The teams drew 1-1 at Mestalla – Mario Kempes and Tommy McLean trading goals – before Valencia prevailed 3-1 at Ibrox. Kempes scored twice after Derek Johnstone had cancelled out an opening goal by Rainer Bonhof, later Scotland's Under-21 coach. Bonhof's free-kick deflected in off Sandy Jardine, today part of Rangers' back-room staff. Valencia went on to beat Arsenal FC in the final.

• When they met Rangers again in the 1999/2000 UEFA Champions League first group stage, Kily González's second-half double secured a 2-0 home win for Valencia. The Spanish side, eventual runners-up that year, then triumphed 2-1 in Glasgow, Gaizka Mendieta and Claudio López scoring before Craig Moore halved the deficit.

• With Dick Advocaat and Héctor Cúper the respective coaches, the lineups for that last meeting in Spain on 15 September 1999 were:
Valencia: Cañizares, Angloma, Björklund, Pellegrino, Carboni, Mendieta, Gerard, Albelda, González, Sánchez (Angulo 80), López (Ilie 70).
Rangers: Charbonnier, Porrini (Kanchelskis 72), Moore, Amoruso, Vidmar, Reyna, Ferguson, Van Bronckhorst (Johansson 85), McCann (Albertz 46), Amato, Mols.

• The only survivor from the two squads is David Albelda.

Match background
• Rangers suffered their only away defeat in last season's UEFA Champions League group stage on Spanish soil, 1-0 at Sevilla FC. They made it three draws in their last four away games in the competition by holding Manchester United 0-0 on Matchday 1.

• Valencia's overall home record against Scottish opponents is two wins and one draw. Their last Scottish visitors were Celtic FC for a 2001/02 UEFA Cup third round tie. Vicente scored the only goal and Valencia eventually prevailed 5-4 on penalties after losing the second leg 1-0.

• The Scottish titleholders have lost on their last three visits to Spain where their overall record is W0 D2 L8. Rangers have scored only two goals in those ten matches: Peter Løvenkrands' effort in a 1-1 draw at Villarreal CF in the 2005/06 UEFA Champions League and McLean's strike in 1979/80.

Team ties
• Pablo Hernández was a 70th-minute substitute as Spain beat Scotland 3-2 in UEFA EURO 2012 qualifying at Glasgow's Hampden Park on 12 October. Rangers' Allan McGregor, Steven Whittaker, David Weir, Lee McCulloch, Kenny Miller and Steven Naismith were in the home lineup, Naismith making it 1-2 with his first international goal and Whittaker dismissed for a second yellow card in the 89th minute.

• Miller came on for the final two minutes of an abandoned Spain-Scotland friendly at the Estadio Ciudad de Valencia in September 2004. Vicente was a substitute for Spain and Valencia old boy Rubén Baraja scored the hosts' goal in a match curtailed after 59 minutes with the score at 1-1 because of floodlight failure following heavy rain.

• Rangers reserve coach Tommy Wilson was in joint charge of the Scotland team beaten 2-1 by a Spain side including Juan Mata in the 2006 UEFA European Under-19 Championship final.

• Alejandro Domínguez was an unused substitute when FC Zenit St. Petersburg beat Rangers in the 2008 UEFA Cup final.

• Roberto Soldado was on the bench as CA Osasuna overcame Rangers 1-0 in the 2006/07 UEFA Cup round of 16.

• Ricardo Costa was part of the FC Porto team that beat Celtic FC 3-2 in the 2003 UEFA Cup final and also played in a 3-2 UEFA Champions League loss at Rangers in September 2005.

• Joachim Björklund made 59 appearances for Rangers between 1996 and 1998. He then spent three years with Valencia, scoring once in 57 league games.