Nordic rivals ready to face the music

The stakes are high for FC København and Rosenborg BK as they meet in Group G on Matchday 4, with the Norwegian side in particular knowing that they are in the last-chance saloon when it comes to their hopes of reaching the Round of 32.

• København were not in action on 27 November, but with just one point from their previous two games are level with Rosenborg at the foot of the section. However, they at least know that they will have some chance of qualifying on Matchday 5 – however slender – regardless of the result of the game against their Norwegian visitors.

• Rosenborg have no such luxury, having matched their worst ever home defeat in European competition in losing 4-0 to Valencia CF last Thursday. This is their final Group G game, and anything other than a win would spell the end of their continental campaign for the season.

• This will be København and Rosenborg's first meeting in European club competition. The Norwegian club never played against either of the two sides that merged to form København, Kjøbenhavns BK or B1903 København.

• København have played one previous two-legged tie against a Norwegian club, beating Lillestrøm SK 3-1 at home and 4-2 away in the second qualifying round of this season's UEFA Cup.

• Lillestrøm are among København coach Ståle Solbakken's former clubs. The Norwegian represented them as a player between 1994 and 1997.

• Former midfielder Solbakken and Rosenborg striker Steffen Iversen played together with Norway, and were both in the squad that narrowly missed out on a quarter-final place at UEFA EURO 2000™.

• Rosenborg have played four games against Danish sides, taking on København's rivals Brøndby IF twice and winning on all four occasions. One of those ties was in the first round of this season's UEFA Cup.

• Rosenborg's Swedish coach Erik Hamrén should know all about Danish football having spent five seasons at Aalborg BK prior to joining the Trondheim club in 2008.

• Hamrén won the Superligaen title with AaB in the 2007/08 season and was recently named as Denmark's Coach of the Year.

• København midfielder Rasmus Würtz played under Hamrén at AaB.

• København's Swedish left-back Oscar Wendt and Rosenborg's Uruguayan central defender Alejandro Lago were team-mates at Swedish side IFK Göteborg in 2006.

• København forward Morten Nordstrand and Rosenborg's Danish defender Kris Stadsgaard were both at FC Nordsjælland in 2006/07.

• Making their second appearance at this stage of the competition, København have lost all three of their previous UEFA Cup group-stage home games.

• København's William Kvist and Zdeněk Pospěch are both within a booking of a one-match ban.

• Valencia play Club Brugge KV in Thursday's other Group G game. AS Saint-Etienne are the only side in the section not in action on Matchday 4.

• The draw for the UEFA Cup Round of 32 and Round of 16 will be held at UEFA Headquarters in Nyon on Friday 19 December at 13.00CET. Group winners will be paired with third-placed sides from other UEFA Cup sections, while second-placed finishers will be drawn against one of the eight clubs who finished third in the UEFA Champions League groups. The UEFA Cup group winners and runners-up will play the second leg at home. Teams from the same association cannot be drawn against each other.