Qarabağ v Anderlecht background

Qarabağ FK may be underdogs on paper as they welcome RSC Anderlecht in UEFA Europa League Group J, but the Azerbaijani champions' home record suggests they will be no pushovers in Baku.

Previous meetings
• The sides are meeting for the first time in UEFA competition.

• Qarabağ won their only previous home game against Belgian opponents 1-0 – however they had lost the first leg of that 2011/12 UEFA Europa League third qualifying round tie against Club Brugge KV 4-1.

• Anderlecht lost their sole previous match in Azerbaijan 1-0 – against Neftçi PFK in the 2005/06 UEFA Champions League second qualifying round – but had strolled the opening fixture 5-0.

Form guide
• Qarabağ have not conceded in their last four European home games (W1 D3), with three of those ending 0-0.

• Anderlecht are without a victory in 11 European away matches (D6 L5) since a 6-0 success at FK Ekranas in 2012/13 UEFA Champions League qualifying.

• This is Qarabağ's second UEFA Europa League group stage campaign; they narrowly missed the cut for the round of 32 last season, having become the second Azeri side to make it to a major UEFA group stage – after Neftçi in 2012/13 – and the first to actually win a group game.

• Anderlecht advanced to the round of 32 in all four of their previous UEFA Cup and UEFA Europa League group phase campaigns, most recently in 2011/12.

Trivia and links
• The journey from Brussels to Baku is just over 3,650km, making this the longest trip of matchday two.

• Anderlecht's Egyptian midfielder Mahmoud Hassan turns 21 the day of the Qarabağ game.

• Qarabağ midfielder Reynaldo (in Brussels from 2008–13) and forward Samuel Armenteros (2013–15) both joined the club from Anderlecht, though both made just five league appearances for Les Mauves.

• Qarabağ's Macedonian centre-back Vladimir Dimitrovski also plied his trade in Belgium with KVC Westerlo (2006–07)

• Qarabağ are one of ten domestic champions in this season's group stage, along with KF Skenderbëu (Albania), APOEL FC (Cyprus), FC Viktoria Plzeň (Czech Republic), FC Midtjylland (Denmark), KKS Lech Poznań (Poland), FK Partizan (Serbia), Celtic FC (Scotland), Molde FK (Norway) and FC Basel 1893 (Switzerland).

The coaches
• Qarabağ coach Gurban Gurbanov is still his country's highest-scoring international with 12 goals in 62 matches and played his club football in Russia and Ukraine as well as Azerbaijan. Coach since 2008, the former striker has led Qarabağ to domestic titles in the last two campaigns.

• Previously assistant coach, Besnik Hasi assumed sole command at Anderlecht in 2014. Capped 47 times by Albania, Hasi's playing career took off after moving to Belgium in 1994, the midfielder winning a title with KRC Genk and another with Anderlecht, where he returned after ending his playing days at Cercle Brugge KSV.