Striking rivals face off in Group C

Two of the top scorers in the 2008/09 UEFA Cup will be on opposite sides in Genoa as UC Sampdoria play host to VfB Stuttgart in their first home tie in the section.

• Stuttgart's Mario Gómez is the joint top scorer in this season's UEFA Cup with five goals in the competition proper. He shares the lead with PFC CSKA Moskva's Vágner Love.

• Sampdoria's Emiliano Bonnazzoli is also well up the goalscoring pecking order with four strikes to date.

• This is Stuttgart's first game following the departure of coach Armin Veh and his assistant Alfons Higl on Monday. Veh led Stuttgart to the title in 2006/07 but his side lie eleventh this time round. His replacement is 36-year-old former Stuttgart, FC Bayern München, Liverpool FC and Germany player Markus Babbel, though former reserve team coach Rainer Widmeyer will be technically in charge as Babbel does not hold the necessary coaching licence.

• Babbel has played in four UEFA Club competition games against Italian sides, with his record reading W1 D1 L2. The win and the draw were both in Italy. He also played for Germany in a 2-0 home friendly win against Italy in June 1995.

• Nothing will be decided in Group C on Matchday 3, with four teams level on three points at the start of play.

• However, a win for either side is highly likely to help them through to the last 32. Only once in the four-year history of the UEFA Cup group stage has a total of six points not been enough to qualify, with Rangers FC missing out in the 2004/05 edition of the competition.

• Sampdoria were not in action on Matchday 2 after winning 2-1 against FK Partizan in Belgrade in their opening match. Stuttgart lost their opener 2-0 at Sevilla FC, but made amends with victory by the same scoreline at home to Partizan.

• This is Stuttgart and Sampdoria's first meeting in UEFA club competition.

• Stuttgart have played eight games against Italian sides in Europe, winning two, drawing two and losing four. Away from home, they have lost three games and drawn one against Serie A opposition.

• The Bundesliga club's most notable tie with an Italian club came in the 1988/89 UEFA Cup final, when SSC Napoli record a 2-1 home win in the first leg before a 3-3 draw in Germany to take the trophy.

• Sampdoria have played seven games against German sides, winning three, drawing three and losing one. They have won three games at home, drawing the other.

• Experienced Stuttgart goalkeeper Jens Lehmann had a season in Italy with AC Milan in 1998/99, although he made only five league appearances.

• Sampdoria's Swiss midfielder Reto Ziegler spent part of the 2005/06 campaign on loan with Bundesliga club Hamburger SV. During that time he played alongside Stuttgart's Dutch defender Khalid Boulahrouz.

• Sampdoria are unbeaten in their last ten UEFA club competition home games, a run which stretches back to September 1997 when Athletic Club Bilbao earned a 2-1 victory in Genoa in the UEFA Cup first round.

• Partizan play R. Standard de Liège in Matchday 3's other Group C tie. Sevilla are the only side in the section not in action.