Metalist well set ahead of Rosenborg visit

Quarter-finalists last season, FC Metalist Kharkiv can once again ensure their progress from the group stage should they defeat Rosenborg BK for the second time in a fortnight.

• Rosenborg looked to be on track for their second Group K victory on matchday three and led Metalist until the final ten minutes thanks to Tarik Elyounoussi's opener. However, late goals from Marlos and Cleiton Xavier earned the Ukrainian side maximum points.

• Metalist are level on seven points with section leaders Bayer 04 Leverkusen and will qualify with two games to spare if they beat Rosenborg.

Previous meetings
• The sides met for the first time on matchday three in what was also Metalist's maiden encounter with a Norwegian side.

• Rosenborg's record in seven games against Ukrainian clubs now reads W1 D0 L6 (W1 D0 L3 in Trondheim – W0 D0 L3 in Ukraine).

• Rosenborg have yet to keep a clean sheet against a Ukrainian side – the only time they conceded fewer than two against Premier League opposition was in the 1990/91 UEFA Cup first round, when they beat FC Chornomorets Odesa 2-1 in Trondheim.

Match background
• Metalist have lost just one of their last nine European home games, a 1-0 defeat by Olympiacos FC in last season's UEFA Europa League round of 16 first leg. They have won five and drawn the other three.

• The Ukrainian side have conceded just twice in five matches in the 2012/13 UEFA Europa League, play-offs included.

• Rosenborg and FC Twente are the only sides to have made it all the way from the first qualifying round to the group stage this season. A 1-0 loss at Leverkusen on matchday two ended the Trondheim club's nine-game unbeaten run in Europe this term (W5 D4).

Team facts
• All four of Metalist's group stage goals have been scored between the hour mark and the final whistle.

• This will be Metalist's 50th game in UEFA competition – the previous 49 have ended W26 D12 L11.

• Rosenborg coach Jan Jönsson was a midfielder at Halmstads BK in his native Sweden from 1978–92, before moving to Japan, where he served as a player and assistant coach under Stuart Baxter at Sanfrecce Hiroshima and Vissel Kobe. He took command at Rosenborg in 2011 following fruitful spells with Landskrona BoIS (2001–04) and Stabæk Fotball (2005–10).

• 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 named Ukraine coach on his 59th birthday in February 2010 but stepped down that August to focus solely on his club duties.