Schalke v Chelsea background

Roberto Di Matteo, the manager who led Chelsea FC to their 2012 UEFA Champions League triumph, now stands in the way of the London side's attempt to secure their place as Group G winners.

• Before Di Matteo took over at FC Schalke 04, his team drew 1-1 at Stamford Bridge on matchday one. Klaas-Jan Huntelaar equalised after Cesc Fàbregas had opened the scoring.

Previous meetings
• The clubs met in last season's group stage with Chelsea winning 3-0 in Germany – Eden Hazard getting the final goal – and at home.

• The lineups at Stadion Gelsenkirchen on 22 October 2013 were:
Schalke:Hildebrand, Uchida, Höwedes, Matip, Aogo, Jones (Kolašinac 71), Neustädter, Clemens, Meyer (Goretzka 78), Draxler, Boateng (Szalai 71).
Chelsea: Čech, Ivanović, Cahill, Terry, Azpilicueta, Ramires, Lampard, Schürrle (Mikel 72), Oscar (David Luiz 84), Hazard (Eto'o 88), Torres.

• The sides also faced off in the 2007/08 group stage, Chelsea 2-0 victors in London, Didier Drogba scoring the second, before a goalless draw in Germany.

Match background

Schalke
• Schalke appointed Di Matteo as coach on 7 October following the departure of Jens Keller. It is the Italian's first role since leaving Chelsea in November 2012. That came just six months after he had led the west London outfit to UEFA Champions League glory with a penalty shoot-out victory over FC Bayern München in the Germans' own stadium.

• Schalke have won ten of their last 20 European home games, with five draws and five defeats. On matchday three Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting converted an added-time penalty to give them a dramatic 4-3 victory over Sporting Clube de Portugal after the visitors had first taken the lead and then retrieved a 3-1 deficit to level.

• Schalke went in front in the return against the Lisbon team only to lose 4-2, a defeat which left them with just a one-point advantage over Sporting in second position. 

• The Königsblauen have not won in their last five home fixtures with English opponents, losing three and drawing two. Their home record against English sides is W3 D2 L3.

Chelsea
• The Blues won 1-0 at Sporting on matchday two, Nemanja Matić making a goalscoring return to Lisbon. After overwhelming NK Maribor 6-0 at home, they were then held 1-1 in Slovenia yet are still three points clear in the section.

• Chelsea's overall record against Bundesliga opposition is W9 D5 L4. After the UEFA Champions League final triumph they played Bayern again 15 months later in the UEFA Super Cup in Prague, succumbing 5-4 on penalties after a 2-2 draw.

• Chelsea's last defeat against German opposition was a 2-1 loss at Bayer 04 Leverkusen on 23 November 2011; they went on to win the competition.

• Chelsea, in their 13th group stage campaign and 12th in a row, have topped their section in eight of their last 11 seasons, qualifying as runners-up in two other years.

• Mourinho lifted the UEFA Champions League trophy with FC Porto (2004) and FC Internazionale Milano (2010) and is bidding to become the first manager to win the European Cup with three different teams.

Coach and player links
• André Schürrle scored for 1. FSV Mainz 05 and Bayer 04 Leverkusen in two victories against Schalke between 2009 and 2013.

• Schürrle is a Germany team-mate of Benedikt Höwedes, Julian Draxler, Dennis Aogo, Sidney Sam and Roman Neustädter. John Obi Mikel and Chinedu Obasi play together for Nigeria.

• Joel Matip registered in Cameroon's 4-1 defeat by Brazil, who fielded Oscar, Willian and Ramires, in this summer's FIFA World Cup group stage. Maxim Choupo-Moting also played for Cameroon.

• Höwedes and Draxler figured in Germany's World Cup semi-final victory over a Brazil side who included Ramires, Willian and Oscar, the last-mentioned scoring the hosts' goal in a 7-1 reverse. Schürrle netted twice for Germany.

• Kevin-Prince Boateng played for Portsmouth FC in the 2010 FA Cup final against Chelsea, losing 1-0. Petr Čech, Branislav Ivanović and John Terry were in opposition.

• Huntelaar was on target in the Netherlands' 4-2 loss to Eden Hazard's Belgium in a Brussels friendly international on 15 August 2012.

Match facts

Schalke
• Huntelaar and Boateng are both a booking away from a suspension.

• Felipe Santana (out since 30 August, adductor injury) and Matip (4 October, foot) returned to action on Saturday as Schalke scored three inside 25 minutes at home to VfL Wolfsburg, eventually winning 3-2.

• Christian Fuchs made it 3-0 against Wolfsburg, his first goal for club or country in two years and one day.

• Schalke have won four and lost three since Roberto Di Matteo was appointed on 7 October. All the wins have come at home, all the losses away.

• The Royal Blues have lost seven of their nine away matches in all competitions this term, winning one. At home they are unbeaten (W5 D3).

• Draxler suffered a thigh injury after only 11 seconds against FC Augsburg on 25 October and will be sidelined until the end of the year.

• Huntelaar scored twice in the Netherlands' 6-0 UEFA EURO 2016 qualifying victory against Latvia on 16 November.

• Choupo-Moting started the 1-0 triumph over Congo DR on 15 November that secured Cameroon's place at the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations.

• Max Meyer was on target during Germany Under-21s' 3-1 friendly win against a Netherlands including Chelsea's Nathan Aké on 13 November.

• Sead Kolašinac (knee, 23 August) and Jefferson Farfán (knee, early July) are long-term absentees. Fabian Giefer (5 August, adductors) is nearing full fitness.

Chelsea
• Filipe Luís is a booking away from a suspension.

• The Blues are 18 matches unbeaten in 2014/15, winning 14. They have not lost since April's UEFA Champions League semi-final second leg defeat at home against Club Atlético de Madrid.

• Diego Costa scored his 11th Premier League goal of the season as Chelsea won 2-0 at home to a West Bromwich Albion FC side who played with ten men for over an hour on Saturday.

• Fàbregas did not take part in either of Spain's matches this month due to a minor hamstring problem but started on Saturday.

• Fàbregas has reached ten assists in just 12 top-flight appearances this season; faster than any other player in a single Premier League campaign.

• Loïc Rémy was an unused substitute in the 2-0 win at Liverpool FC on 8 November on his return from a groin injury he sustained opening the scoring against Maribor on matchday three. He came on against West Brom.

• On 10 November, Chelsea announced that Oscar had signed a new contract committing him to the club until summer 2019.

• Costa, Thibaut Courtois and Hazard are among 23 players nominated for the 2014 FIFA Ballon d'Or. A three-man shortlist will be announced on 1 December, with the winner revealed on 12 January. Mourinho is up for the men's coach award.