Beşiktaş v Partizan background

Beşiktaş JK handed FK Partizan their heaviest European home defeat last time out and will hope for three more points as the sides cross paths again in Turkey in UEFA Europa League Group C.

Form guide
• Beşiktaş beat Partizan 4-0 in Belgrade on matchday three; it was the home side's worst European home loss to date, and the Black Eagles' first victory in Group C.

• Partizan have yet to score in Group C; they have also gone 15 matches (D4 L11) without a UEFA group stage win since beating FC Shakhtar Donetsk 1-0 in their final game of the 2009/10 UEFA Europa League.

• Beşiktaş are unbeaten in six UEFA group stage encounters (W4 D2) and four UEFA home games (W2 D2) since a 3-0 loss to Club Atlético de Madrid in the 2011/12 UEFA Europa League round of 16.

Trivia and links
• Partizan have had the fewest shots on goal (22) of any side in the group stage so far.

• This is Beşiktaş's sixth group stage campaign in this competition; they failed to make it through three UEFA Cup group stages but have progressed on both attempts since the advent of the UEFA Europa League.

• Partizan have failed to make it through their last five UEFA group stage campaigns since getting to the round of 16 via the inaugural UEFA Cup group stage in 2004/05.

• Partizan's Saša Ilić (Galatasaray AŞ 2005-07) and Nikola Drinčić (Gaziantepspor 2006-07) both have Turkish league experience.

The coaches
• Beşiktaş coach since June 2013, Slaven Bilić earned a bronze medal as a defender with Croatia at the 1998 FIFA World Cup finals, and went on to lead his team to UEFA EURO 2008 and UEFA EURO 2012 as a coach. A rock music fan with a law degree, he was in charge at FC Lokomotiv Moskva before moving to Turkey.

• Just 35, Marko Nikolić took charge of Partizan in December 2013, having started his career as a youth coach at FK Rad, going on to coach their senior team, plus Serbia's Under-18 side and FK Vojvodina.