Anderlecht out to end Brussels drought

RSC Anderlecht go in search of their first UEFA Champions League home victory in nine years when they take on Group C rivals Málaga CF at the Constant Vanden Stock Stadium.

• Anderlecht have lost seven and drawn two of their last nine home games in the group stage and last won a UEFA Champions League fixture in Brussels in November 2003, 1-0 against Olympique Lyonnais.

• While Anderlecht opened Group C with a goalless draw at AC Milan, Málaga marked their group stage debut with an impressive 3-0 home defeat of FC Zenit St Petersburg, Isco scoring twice.

Match background
• Anderlecht did beat FK Ekranas 5-0 and AEL Limassol FC 2-0 at home in this season's qualifying rounds and last term recorded three straight home victories in the UEFA Europa League group stage.

• Málaga boast a solid away record in UEFA competition. Besides earning a 0-0 draw at Panathinaikos FC in the play-offs, the Andalusian club won five and lost just one of eight away fixtures in their only previous European campaign – which encompassed the 2002 UEFA Intertoto Cup and 2002/03 UEFA Cup.

• Málaga's first opponents in that debut campaign were KAA Gent in the UEFA Intertoto Cup third round. They won 3-0 at home before earning a 1-1 draw in Belgium thanks to Julio Dely Valdés's added-time equaliser.

• Anderlecht won their first seven home matches against Spanish visitors but have lost three of the past four. Their overall home record against Liga sides is W8 D0 L3.

• Anderlecht's most recent meeting with a Spanish club was a 5-1 aggregate win against Athletic Club in the 2009/10 UEFA Cup round of 32. Roland Juhász scored in a 4-0 home win, with Lucas Biglia on target in the 1-1 first-leg draw in Bilbao.

Team ties
• John van den Brom's only previous experience of Spanish opposition came as a player in the Vitesse side beaten 1-0 home and away by Real Madrid CF in the 1992/93 UEFA Cup third round.

• Silvio Proto and Olivier Deschacht played in Anderlecht's 1-0 home loss to Joaquín's Real Betis Balompié on matchday two of the 2005/06 UEFA Champions League group stage. Deschacht then helped Anderlecht to a 1-0 victory in Seville.

• In between those matches, Joaquín helped Spain beat Proto and Deschacht's Belgium 2-0 in a 2006 FIFA World Cup qualifier in Brussels.

• Roque Santa Cruz scored 11 minutes after coming off the bench in FC Bayern München's 1-1 draw at Anderlecht on matchday two of the 2003/04 group stage. The game was Martín Demichelis's debut in UEFA competition with Bayern. Deschacht also played and both he and Santa Cruz featured in Bayern's 1-0 return victory.

• Oguchi Onyewu played in Belgium from 2003 to 2009, spending one season on loan with RAA Louviéroise before moving on to R. Standard de Liège. With Standard he played alongside Milan Jovanović and Dieudonné Mbokani, winning the Belgian title together in 2008 and 2009.

• Onyewu won six and lost just two of 12 meetings with Anderlecht, including Standard's Belgian First League championship play-off victory in 2009.

• Onyewu is a United States national team colleague of Sacha Kljestjan.

• Jérémy Toulalan helped Lyon eliminate Anderlecht in the 2009/10 UEFA Champions League play-offs, featuring in both legs of an 8-2 aggregate triumph including a 3-1 success in Brussels.

• Behrang Safari was in the FC Basel 1893 team beaten 5-0 at home by FC Barcelona in the 2008/09 group stage but which subsequently earned a 1-1 draw at the Camp Nou.

• Javier Saviola scored on his only previous appearance against a Belgian side, netting in Barcelona's 3-2 victory against Club Brugge KV in the 2002/03 first group stage.

• Massimo Bruno struck a late goal in Belgium's 2-1 loss to Juanmi's Spain in the UEFA European Under-19 Championship elite round qualifier in Italy in May. Jordan Lukaku and Dennis Praet were also in the Belgium team.