Rijeka v Olympiacos: play-off facts and stats

Olympiacos FC missed out on the group stage last season but take a narrow advantage to HNK Rijeka for the second leg of their UEFA Champions League play-off tie.

Previous meetings
• The first leg was the clubs' first meeting in UEFA competition. Rijeka took the lead through Héber's stunning strike before half-time, only for Olympiacos to equalise through Vadis Odjidja before completing the turnaround thanks to Alaixys Romao's goal three minutes into added time.

• Rijeka had never played a Greek team before their trip to Piraeus.

• Before facing Rijeka, Olympiacos had played six matches against Croatian opposition – all against GNK Dinamo Zagreb. They beat Dinamo 3-1 at home in the 1977/78 UEFA Cup first round first leg only to lose the return 5-1, but have enjoyed better fortune in UEFA Champions League group games against the same opponents.

• The Greek club overcame Dinamo 2-0 at home in 1998/99, drawing 1-1 away, and recorded away (1-0) and home (2-1) wins against them in 2015/16.

Match background
• Rijeka were unbeaten in seven European matches (W2 D5), home and away, before the first leg.

• The Croatian club have lost only one (W9 D6 L1) of their last 16 European home games – 3-0 at Aberdeen FC in the 2015/16 UEFA Europa League second qualifying round.

• Rijeka reached this season's play-offs by beating Welsh champions The New Saints FC 7-1 on aggregate in the second qualifying round (2-0 home, 5-1 away) before ousting FC Salzburg on away goals (1-1 away, 0-0 home).

• This is only Rijeka's second UEFA Champions League campaign; in their first, in 1999/2000, they crashed out 6-1 on aggregate against FK Partizan in the second qualifying round.

• This is Rijeka's fifth consecutive season in Europe, with their most successful campaigns in that run coming in 2013/14 and 2014/15, when they contested the UEFA Europa League group stage.

• Olympiacos qualified with a 5-3 aggregate victory against Partizan in the third qualifying round (3-1 away, 2-2 home).

• The Greek side have won two of their last three away European games.

• Olympiacos lost to Hapoel Beer-Sheva FC in last season's third qualifying round – the first time they had missed out on the UEFA Champions League group stage since 2010/11.

• In 2016/17, the Greek side went on to reach the UEFA Europa League round of 16, going down 5-2 on aggregate to Beşiktaş JK.

• Olympiacos are aiming to reach the group stage for the 18th time.

Team and coach links
• Born in Osijek, in eastern Croatia, Olympiacos defender Hrvoje Milić started his career with HNK Hajduk Split, returning there for a second spell in August 2015. He moved to Greece this summer after a season with ACF Fiorentina.

• Milić played alongside Rijeka's Andrej Prskalo at NK Istra 1961 for two seasons (2011/12, 2012/13).

Coach profiles
• Hired in February 2013, Rijeka coach Matjaž Kek led his native Slovenia to the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Kek had started and finished his playing career as a defender at NK Maribor – where his father and son also played – either side of a long stint in Austria. He returned home to Maribor for his first coaching roles before a sojourn in Saudi Arabia with al-Ittihad. Under his stewardship, Rijeka landed the Croatian double last term.

• Previously assistant coach, Besnik Hasi assumed sole command at RSC Anderlecht in March 2014. Capped 47 times by Albania, Hasi guided the Purple-and-Whites to the Belgian title two months later. He moved to Legia Warszawa in June 2016 but was dismissed that September. Olympiacos tempted him back into coaching this summer.

Penalty shoot-outs
• Neither Rijeka nor Olympiacos have ever featured in a UEFA penalty shoot-out.