Bayern braced for Zürich test

FC Bayern München are a rare sighting in UEFA Champions League qualifying and they will look to maintain their perfect record against an FC Zürich side seeking a second appearance in the group stage.

Previous meetings
• The sides are meeting for the first time in UEFA competition.

• Bayern have played only four UEFA competition games against Swiss opposition. They overcame Neuchâtel Xamax FC 3-2 on aggregate in the 1987/88 European Champion Clubs' Cup second round in Jupp Heynckes' first spell as coach, then beat FC Basel 1893 away (2-1) and home (3-0) in the 2010/11 UEFA Champions League group stage.

• Zürich have played 11 games against sides from the 'Big canton' with the record W2 D1 L8 (W0 D1 L4 in Germany). Their only success in five two-legged ties against German opponents came in the 1976/77 Champion Clubs' Cup quarter-finals, where they defeated SG Dynamo Dresden on away goals; Liverpool FC beat them 6-1 over two legs in the semi-finals.

Match background
• Bayern had recorded seven successive home UEFA Champions League victories prior to their 3-2 loss against FC Internazionale Milano in last season's round of 16.

• Zürich's last European away success was a 1-0 victory at AC Milan in the 2009/10 UEFA Champions League group stage. They have not won any of their three subsequent away ties in Europe, though last month's 1-1 draw at R. Standard de Liège ended a run of two defeats.

• Four-time European champions Bayern have won the continent's top club competition only once in the UEFA Champions League era, in 2000/01, but were losing finalists in both 1998/99 and 2009/10.

• They have been absent from the UEFA Champions League group stage only once since 1997/98, featuring in the UEFA Cup in 2007/08.

• Third in the Bundesliga last term, only twice have Bayern had to come through qualifying to reach the UEFA Champions League group stage. They won 5-1 on aggregate against FK Obilić in the second qualifying phase in 1998/99 and 6-1 over two legs against another Serbian side, FK Partizan, in the 2002/03 third qualifying round.

• Zürich made it to the UEFA Champions League group stage for the only time in 2009/10. They failed to progress, but enjoyed two memorable games against AC Milan, a 1-0 win at San Siro and a 1-1 draw at home. They lost their remaining four matches against Real Madrid CF and Olympique de Marseille.

• This is Zürich's fourth qualifying campaign. They lost to FC Salzburg (agg: 2-3) in the second qualifying round in 2006/07 and against Beşiktaş JK (agg: 1-3) in the following season's third qualifying round. They made up for that disappointment in 2009/10 by beating NK Maribor (agg: 5-3) in the third qualifying round and then disposing of FK Ventspils in the play-offs (agg: 5-1). A 2-1 aggregate win for Urs Fischer's men against Standard in this season's third qualifying round means they are now unbeaten in three qualifying ties.

Team ties
• Bayern's home record in their previous European games under Heynckes reads W13 D3 L2.

• Ivica Olić scored one of Hamburger SV's goals in a 3-1 win at Zürich in the UEFA Cup round of 32 in 2007/08. Jerome Boateng appeared as a substitute in the 0-0 second-leg draw.

• Zürich's Ludovic Magnin spent 2002-2005 with SV Werder Bremen and 2005-09 with VfB Stuttgart. With Bremen he experienced a victory and a defeat in two encounters with Bayern and won the 2004 Bundesliga title. With Stuttgart he faced Bayern six times (W2, D1, L3), winning the 2007 Bundesliga.

• Magnin took over the left-back position of Philipp Lahm at Stuttgart – when the former returned to Bayern after a loan spell – where he was a team-mate of Mario Gomez.

• Mathieu Beda spent five years in Germany with 1. FC Kaiserslautern (2006-08) and TSV 1860 München (2008-11). His only encounters with Bayern came with Kaiserslautern, a 1-1 Bundesliga draw and 1-0 cup defeat.

• Amine Chermiti appeared as a substitute for former club Hertha BSC Berlin in a 2-1 Bundesliga victory against Bayern in February 2009.

• Jorge Teixeira played for Maccabi Haifa FC in a 3-0 home defeat by Bayern in the 2009/10 UEFA Champions League group stage.