Salzburg wary of Metalist threat

FC Salzburg know FC Metalist Kharkiv have already taken one Austrian scalp this season as the Ukrainian representatives bid for a second in the round of 32.

Previous meetings
• The sides have been paired for the first time in UEFA competition.

• Salzburg's only previous experience of Ukrainian opposition was a loss to FC Shakhtar Donetsk in the third qualifying round of the 2007/08 UEFA Champions League, winning the first leg 1-0 at home but going down 3-1 in Donetsk.

• Metalist's four games against Austrian sides have ended W2 D1 L1 (W1 D1 L0 in Austria). They beat FK Austria Wien 2-1 away and 4-1 at home in this season's UEFA Europa League group stage.

Match background
• Salzburg have lost just once in their last six European home games, 1-0 against Athletic Club on matchday four this season, with four wins and a draw completing that run.

• Salzburg last competed in the round of 32 in 2009/10 when they were eliminated by R. Standard de Liège. They failed to reach the knockout phase after competing in the 2010/11 group stage.

• Metalist are unbeaten in eight UEFA Europa League games this season, recording five wins and three draws including three wins and a draw on the road. They have twice scored four goals away this season, beating FC Sochaux Montbéliard 4-0 in the play-off round and Malmö FF 4-1 on matchday three.

• The Ukrainian outfit have reached the round of 32 for the third time in four seasons; they beat UC Sampdoria in 2008/09 before bowing out to FC Dynamo Kyiv in the next round and last season they lost out to Bayer 04 Leverkusen.

Team facts
• Ten of Metalist's 15 group stage goals came after the interval, five of them within 15 minutes of the restart.

• Dutchman Ricardo Moniz is in charge at Salzburg, having stepped up from a role as skills coach to replace Huub Stevens following his countryman's dismissal in April. Moniz's only previous experience as a head coach came in a brief caretaker role at Hamburger SV at the end of 2009/10, but he has worked as a specialist trainer at Feyenoord, Grasshopper-Club, PSV Eindhoven and Tottenham Hotspur FC.

• Metalist coach Myron Markevich is a keen student of the game – he has made trips to study Fabio Capello, Christoph Daum and Carlo Ancelotti – and is also an able pianist. Having been in charge of Metalist since 2005, he was also named Ukraine coach on his 59th birthday in February 2010 but stepped down that August to focus solely on his club duties.

Round of 16
• The winners of this tie will take on FC Rubin Kazan or Olympiacos FC in the round of 16 on 8 and 15 March, playing the first leg at home.

• Salzburg have met neither of their potential opponents in UEFA competition.

• Metalist have never come across Rubin, but beat Olympiacos 1-0 at home in the 2008/09 UEFA Cup group stage, Edmar scoring the 88th-minute winner in Kharkiv.

Competition statistics
• An updated version of the UEFA Europa League Statistics Handbook is available here:
http://www.uefa.com/uefaeuropaleague/news/newsid=1750416.html