Ludogorets v København background
Monday, January 9, 2017
Article summary
Having both parachuted down from the UEFA Champions League group stage, the Bulgarian and Danish title holders are ready to meet in the round of 32.
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Ludogorets Razgrad are seven European games without a win, a run including all of their 2016/17 UEFA Champions League group stage campaign that they will be eager to end against København.
Previous meetings
• This is the clubs' first meeting and Ludogorets's first encounter with Danish opponents.
• FCK's record in four games against Bulgarian sides is W3 D0 L1 (W2 at home – W1 L1 in Bulgaria).
Form guide
• Ludogorets made it through from the UEFA Champions League group stage despite not winning a game; since beating Viktoria Plzeň 2-0 at home in the play-offs, they have not prevailed in seven matches (D4 L3).
• FCK have lost only once in six European away fixtures this season (W2 D3 L1) and did not concede in their final three UEFA Champions League group stage games of 2016.
• Ludogorets's only previous springtime European campaign came in 2013/14, when they eliminated Lazio in the UEFA Europa League round of 32 en route to a round of 16 loss to Valencia.
• København have not featured in the spring phase of a European competition since losing to Chelsea in the 2010/11 UEFA Champions League round of 16.
Links and trivia
• The journey from Copenhagen to Sofia, where Ludogorets are playing their European home games, is around 1,650km.
• København's Nicolai Boilesen turns 25 on the day of the first leg. Boilesen and Ludogorets' Jody Lukoki were team-mates at Ajax (2011–14).
• While playing for PSV Eindhoven, FCK captain Mathias 'Zanka' Jørgensen featured in two 2-0 defeats by Ludogorets in the 2013/14 UEFA Europa League group stage.
• Recently named goalkeeper of the year in the Danish Superliga, receiving 'Det Gyldne Bur' (the golden cage) from football magazine Tipsbladet, FCK's Robin Olsen kept a clean sheet when Sweden beat a Bulgaria team featuring Ludogorets' Vladislav Stoyanov, Svetoslav Dyakov and Marcelinho 3-0 in a European Qualifier on 10 October 2016.
• FCK's Andrija Pavlović was a trainee at Rad in Serbia while Ludogorets goalkeeper Milan Borjan was in the first team (2011–13).
• Ludogorets and København are among eight domestic champions involved in the round of 32, along with APOEL (CYP), Olympiacos (GRE), Hapoel Beer-Sheva (ISR), Legia Warszawa (POL), Astra Giurgiu (ROU) and Beşiktaş (TUR).
• Suspended: none.
Misses next match if booked: Natanael (Ludogorets); Mathias Jørgensen, William Kvist (København).
The coaches
• A defender for Slavia Sofia and Yantra Gabrovo, Ludogorets's Georgi Dermendzhiev spent much of his career as an assistant coach with Litex Lovech, Botev Plovdiv and Sliven. On the staff since 2011, he took charge of Ludogorets in summer 2014 and has guided them to two league titles.
• Now in his second spell as København coach, Ståle Solbakken has led the club to six Danish titles. A midfielder, he was capped 58 times by Norway and ended his career at FCK after being diagnosed with a heart problem. He has coached in Norway, Germany and England, as well as in Denmark.
UEFA makes new donation of €100,000 to ICRC
UEFA will mark a decade of helping Afghan landmine victims on Wednesday, when Real Madrid defender Sergio Ramos presents a cheque for €100,000 to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).
"I would like to pay tribute to the ICRC, who have been working relentlessly to help landmine victims, many of whom are children. Their programme in Afghanistan, which has been in place for several years, shows that football can offer real hope in challenging times," said UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin.
"I am glad that UEFA can help this cause, and that the sport we love can have a positive impact on the rehabilitation process of so many people in this troubled region," he added.
The donation supports the ICRC's physical rehabilitation programme for landmine victims and other people with disabilities in Afghanistan – providing artificial limbs, physiotherapy, vocational training and access to the rehabilitation centre's football team. About a third of patients are children.
Sergio Ramos will present the donation before his side's UEFA Champions League round of 16 first leg match against Napoli at the Santiago Bernabéu in Madrid on 15 February.
"The people benefiting from the ICRC programme in Afghanistan are an inspiration to us, as they set an example of how to approach life in a positive manner despite the problems that they face," the Real Madrid captain said.
Sergio Ramos was chosen to hand over the cheque after receiving the most votes in UEFA.com's Team of the Year, which was published in January, and added that it is "a privilege" to be "a source of motivation" to so many people.
"They don't stop dreaming, and they fight to make their dreams come true. As key figures in this sport, it's a true privilege for us footballers to be a source of motivation in their day-to-day lives, and to help them out," he said.
Over the course of a partnership lasting almost 20 years, UEFA has donated in excess of €3.5m to the ICRC to help disadvantaged people around the globe. Meanwhile, over 7 million votes were cast in selecting the UEFA.com users' Team of the Year 2016. More information on the award is available online at en.toty.uefa.com.