UEFA Europa League Official Live football scores & stats
Get
UEFA.com works better on other browsers
For the best possible experience, we recommend using Chrome, Firefox or Microsoft Edge.

Ludogorets out for revenge against Dinamo

PFC Ludogorets Razgrad will have a score to settle when they entertain GNK Dinamo Zagreb in UEFA Europa League Group B after losing to the Croatian champions last season.

Ludogorets triumphed at PSV on matchday one
Ludogorets triumphed at PSV on matchday one ©AFP/Getty Images

The champions of Bulgaria and Croatia meet for the second season in succession, with PFC Ludogorets Razgrad having a score to settle against GNK Dinamo Zagreb in UEFA Europa League Group B.

Previous meetings
• The sides are meeting for the second consecutive campaign, Ante Čačić's Dinamo having eliminated Ivaylo Petev's Ludogorets in the UEFA Champions League second qualifying round last year, following up a 1-1 draw in Razgrad with a 3-2 win in Croatia, though the visitors led twice in that return fixture.

• The lineups for their game in Razgrad on 18 July 2012 – Ludogorets' first fixture in UEFA club competition – were:

Ludogorets: Golubović, Barthe*, Genchev, Dyakov* (Moţi* 83), Ivanov (Aleksandrov* 86), Gargarov, Minev*, Guldan, Stoyanov* (Guela 90+1), Júnior Caiçara*, Marcelinho*.
Dinamo:
Kelava, Ibáñez, Kovačić, Sammir*, Tomečak (Rukavina* 89), Tonel, Vrsaljko, Badelj, Pivarić* (Bećiraj* 56), Vida, Čop* (Alispahić 75).

* registered to play in this season's group stage.

Match background
• Those games against Dinamo represent the sum total of Ludogorets's experience of Croatian opponents, but Dinamo have played two other games against Bulgarian sides – home and away wins against OFC Botev Vratsa in the 1971/72 UEFA Cup. Their overall record against Bulgarian clubs is thus W3 D1 L0 (W2 D0 L0 at home – W1 D1 L0 in Bulgaria.

• Ludogorets can expect little joy in the return fixture; no Bulgarian club have won in six UEFA competition visits to Croatia (D1 L5) – seven if you include PFC Slavia Sofia's 3-0 loss at HNK Hajduk Split in the 1970/71 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, the non-UEFA affiliated precursor to the UEFA Cup and UEFA Europa League.

• Ludogorets are making their first appearance in a UEFA competition group stage in what is only their second European campaign. They were promoted to the Bulgarian top flight for the first time at the end of the 2010/11 season.

• The Bulgarian side kicked off Group B in some style with a 2-0 victory at PSV Eindhoven – their biggest European away success to date.

• Dinamo have yet to make it through the group stage of this competition in five attempts. The have lost their last seven away games in UEFA group stages – including six straight UEFA Champions League group stage defeats – since beating Club Brugge KV 2-0 in Belgium in the 2010/11 UEFA Europa League.

Team facts
• Dinamo's Portuguese defender Rúben Lima celebrates his 24th birthday on the day of the Ludogorets game, with team-mate Junior Fernándes turning 25 the following day.

• Dinamo defender Josip Šimunić will make his 50th UEFA club competition appearance if he takes the field against Ludogorets.

• Ludogorets and Dinamo are among nine domestic champions in this season's group stage along with NK Maribor (Slovenia), FC Sheriff (Moldova), Maccabi Tel-Aviv FC (Israel), Legia Warszawa (Poland), FC Shakhter Karagandy (Kazakhstan), APOEL FC (Cyprus) and IF Elfsborg (Sweden).

• Ludogorets were the only champions in the competition to win their opening fixture. Five of the others were beaten, while three drew.

Coach information
• Brought in to replace Ivaylo Petev as Ludogorets coach in July, Stoicho Stoev was a stylish forward with PFC Lokomotiv Sofia in the 1980s, though he maintained a European outlook and classed Arrigo Sacchi as his coaching idol. After taking charge of a number of smaller Bulgarian clubs, the cool-headed coach led champions Ludogorets – his local side – to their first UEFA Europa League group stage campaign after defeat by FC Basel 1893 in the UEFA Champions League play-offs.

• Miroslav Blažević's assistant when Croatia unexpectedly finished third at the 1998 FIFA World Cup, Branko Ivanković returned to begin a third spell in charge of Dinamo in early September, having led the club to a domestic double in 2007. The former NK Varteks player coached Hannover 96 for a while, and spent four years in charge of Iran prior to club appointments in China, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

Selected for you