Plenty of motivation for Atlético against Aris

Club Atlético de Madrid will look to avenge a Matchday 1 defeat at home by Aris Thessaloniki FC, with a victory in Spain sure to send the UEFA Europa League titleholders through to the last 32 as one of Group B's top two.

• Victory will send Atlético through. Defeat would spell elimination for Aris.

Previous meetings
• Former FC Barcelona trainee Javito scored the only goal when the teams met for the first time on Matchday 1, with Aris beating the holders 1-0 in Greece.

• Javito was again on target when his side lost 2-1 at Real Zaragoza in the 2007/08 UEFA Cup first round, meaning he has scored in both of his club's most recent games against Liga opposition, and is also responsible for their only goal to date on Spanish soil.

• Aris's five games against clubs from Spain have ended W2 D1 L2 (W0 D0 L2 in Spain).

• Atlético have played 12 games against Greek sides, with the record W7 D2 L3 (W6 D0 L0 at home). The aggregate score in those six home wins is 15-5 in Atlético's favour.

• Atlético took on Aris's neighbours PAOK FC in the second round of the 1997/98 UEFA Cup, winning 5-2 in the first leg in Madrid then drawing 4-4 away.

Match background
• Atlético are unbeaten in three Group B matches since their loss at Aris, and have not lost in six games at home in UEFA club competition since a 3-0 loss to FC Porto in their final game of the 2009/10 UEFA Champions League group stage.

• Atlético have not bean beaten in 16 UEFA Cup and UEFA Europa League home fixtures since going down 3-1 to Parma FC in the 1998/99 semi-finals.

• Aris are without an away win in three European games since beating Poland's Jagiellonia Białystok 2-1 in this season's UEFA Europa League third qualifying round. That remains their only victory in 11 European away fixtures since the turn of the millennium.

Team facts
• Aris's Argentinian coach Héctor Cúper knows all about Spanish football, with the former international defender having been in charge at RCD Mallorca, Valencia CF – where his side were runners-up in the 2000 and 2001 UEFA Champions League finals – and Real Betis Balompié. He took over at Aris in November 2009.

• Cúper's record in ten European games against Spanish sides – one with Aris, six at FC Internazionale Milano plus Valencia's all-Spanish 1999/2000 UEFA Champions League semi-final against FC Barcelona and the subsequent showpiece versus Real Madrid CF – reads W4 D2 L4.

• Atlético are led by another former Valencia coach, Quique Sánchez Flores. A Spanish title winner with Real Madrid as a right-back in 1994/95, he also coached Getafe CF and SL Benfica but reached his peak this year, winning the UEFA Europa League and UEFA Super Cup.

• Quique Flores' only experience of Greek opposition as a coach prior to Matchday 1 came in the 2006/07 UEFA Champions League group stage when his Valencia side beat Olympiacos FC 4-2 away and 2-0 at home.

• Aris goalkeeper Juanma, a summer signing, made 13 league appearances for Atlético from 2002 to 2004.