Galatasaray v Lokomotiv Moskva facts

Galatasaray and Lokomotiv Moskva are both returning to the UEFA Champions League after a period of absence – a lengthy one, in the case of the Russian club – and, in an even-looking Group D, each will be seeking a positive start on matchday one.

• The Turkish team are in this stage for the first time since 2015/16 – their fourth successive group campaign – while Lokomotiv are in the group stage for the first time in 15 seasons.

Previous meetings
• Away clubs held sway in the sides' only past fixtures, in the 2002/03 UEFA Champions League first group stage – when current coaches Fatih Terim and Yuri Semin were again in charge of Galatasaray and Lokomotiv respectively. Galatasaray scored twice in the final 20 minutes to win 2-0 in Moscow on matchday one, but Loko bounced back with a 2-1 success in Istanbul in the penultimate round of fixtures – all the goals again coming in the last 20 minutes. That helped the Russian club finish second in the section behind a Barcelona side who won every game; Galatasaray ended fourth.

Form guide
Galatasaray
• Turkish champions in 2017/18, Galatasaray last reached the UEFA Champions League round of 16 in 2013/14.

• Galatasaray are in the group stage for the 15th time – Beşiktaş are the next most successful Turkish club, on seven.

• The Turkish club's 2017/18 European campaign lasted only one tie – they lost 3-1 on aggregate to Swedish club Östersund in the UEFA Europa League second qualifying round.

• Cimbom have drawn their last three home European games 1-1. They have won only one of their last nine continental fixtures in Istanbul, drawing five.

• Gala have lost their last three home fixtures against Russian visitors, and have never won a home match in four attempts. Indeed, that 2002 victory at Lokomotiv is their sole success in eight games overall, home and away (D2 L5).

• Galatasaray are the only team from Turkey to have reached a European Cup semi-final, in 1989.

Lokomotiv
• Russian champions last season for the first time since 2004, Lokomotiv are launching their fourth group stage campaign, having not featured since 2003/04 – their third successive appearance – when they reached the round of 16.

• The Moscow club have qualified from their group on their last two appearances.

• In 2017/18, Lokomotiv kicked off in the UEFA Europa League group stage, beating Nice in the round of 32 before suffering an 8-1 aggregate loss against eventual champions Atlético Madrid in the last 16.

• The 3-0 first-leg loss at Atlético was Lokomotiv's first away defeat in Europe last season (W2 D2). They have lost only two of their last ten European away matches (W4 D4), the other in Turkey at Fenerbahçe (0-2) in the 2015/16 UEFA Europa League round of 32.

• Loko have drawn their last two away UEFA Champions League matches 1-1 – both in the 2005/06 qualifying phase – but are without an away victory in the competition since that 2002 win at Galatasaray. Their subsequent record, qualifying included, is D4 L6.

• The Moscow club have drawn three of their last four fixtures against Turkish clubs, losing the other. At home overall, they have won only one of their five fixtures with Turkish visitors (D2 L2).

Links and trivia
• Fernando Muslera was in the Uruguay side that won 3-0 against Russia in this summer's FIFA World Cup group stage. Aleksei Miranchuk was in Russia's starting line-up before being replaced by Fedor Smolov in the second half; Anton Miranchuk was an unused substitute.

• Benedikt Höwedes and Jefferson Farfán were in the Schalke side beaten 4-3 on aggregate by Galatasaray in the 2012/13 UEFA Champions League round of 16.

• Have played together:
Mariano Ferreira & Grzegorz Krychowiak (Bordeaux 2012, Sevilla 2015/16)
Younès Belhanda & Benedikt Höwedes (Schalke 2016)
Eren Derdiyok & Vedran Ćorluka (Bayer Leverkusen 2012)
Sofiane Feghouli & Manuel Fernandes (Valencia 2010)

• Has played in Turkey
Manuel Fernandes (Beşiktaş 2011–14)

• International team-mates:
Henry Onyekuru & Brian Idowu (Nigeria)

Latest news

Galatasaray
• Summer transfers
In: Muğdat Çelik (Akhisarspor), Yuto Nagatomo (Inter, loan made permanent), Henry Onyekuru (Everton, loan), Birhan Vatansever (Bandırmaspor)*, Emre Akbaba (Alanyaspor), Badou Ndiaye (Stoke City, loan), Ömer Bayram (Akhisarspor)
Out: Luis Cavanda (Standard Liège, loan made permanent), Cédric Carrasso (released), Eray İşcan (released), Koray Günter (Genoa), Iasmin Latovlevici (Bursaspor), Yasin Öztekin (Göztepe), Hakan Balta (retired), Endoğan Adili (released), Lionel Carole (Strasbourg), Bafétimbi Gomis (al-Hilal), Tolga Ciğerci (Fenerbahçe)
*Not in UEFA Champions League squad

• Galatasaray lost 5-4 on penalties to Akhisar after a 1-1 draw in the Turkish Super Cup on 5 August.

• Galatasaray are unbeaten in 22 Turkish Super League matches at home, winning 21 of them including the last 15. Their last defeat was a 1-3 loss against Kasımpaşa on 6 May 2017; they beat the same opponents 4-1 on Friday.

• Garry Rodrigues scored his first two goals of the season for Galatasaray against Kasımpaşa on Friday; the forward has shaken off a hamstring injury and has five goals and two assists in his last six league starts.

• Galatasaray's nine-match winning streak in the league was ended by a 4-0 loss at Trabzonspor on 1 September.

• Before conceding on Friday, Fernando Muslera had kept five successive home league clean sheets, equalling the record of Zoran Simović from 1985/86.

• Fatih Terim made 402 competitive appearances for Galatasaray as a player and reached the same mark as a coach against Göztepe on 19 August. The 6-0 win was Terim's 250th victory as Galatasaray coach.

• Dutch midfielder Ryan Donk has signed a one-year contract extension with the option for a further year.

• Maicon has been restricted to light training by a foot injury although Serdar Aziz, who suffered a hamstring injury while on international duty with Turkey, recovered to score on Friday.

• Muslera kept three clean sheets in five appearances for Uruguay in this summer's FIFA World Cup finals, winning his 100th cap against Russia.

• Serdar Aziz scored Turkey's goal in a 2-1 UEFA Nations League defeat against Russia on 7 September. Three days later, two late goals from substitute Emre Akbaba earned Turkey a 3-2 victory in Sweden.

Lokomotiv Moskva
• Summer transfers
In: Rifat Zhemaletdinov (Rubin), Brian Idowu (Amkar Perm), Éder (LOSC Lille), Grzegorz Krychowiak (Paris Saint-Germain, loan), Benedikt Höwedes (Schalke), Fedor Smolov (Krasnodar)
Out: Nemanja Pejčinović (released), Alan Kasaev (Baltika, loan), Vitali Denisov (Krylya Sovetov, loan)

• On 27 July Lokomotiv suffered a 1-0 extra-time defeat by CSKA in Russian Super Cup.

• Lokomotiv picked up only two points from their first three Premier League matches – the worst start to a campaign by the defending champions in Russian history.

• Lokomotiv have scored only five goals in their first seven league matches, and had to wait until their fourth match for their first goal.

• Maciej Rybus suffered an adductor injury against Krasnodar on 1 September, missing two Poland's two September games as well as Saturday's 1-1 draw against Dinamo Moskva.