København v Torino background
Friday, November 28, 2014
Article summary
FC København are already resigned to an early UEFA Europa League exit but they could ensure misery for Torino FC in their final Group B fixture in Copenhagen.
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Article body
The UEFA Europa League trail has already gone cold for FC København, but Torino FC will travel to Denmark hoping to cling on to a place in the round of 32.
• FCK can finish no higher than third in the section.
• Only victory will guarantee Torino a round of 32 berth.
Form guide
• Substitute Fabio Quagliarella clinched a 1-0 Torino win with an added-time penalty when the sides met in Turin on matchday two.
• Emiliano Mondonico's Torino beat Benny Johansen's B 1903 København 1-0 at home and 2-0 away in the 1991/92 UEFA Cup quarter-finals. Torino went on to reach the final, losing to AFC Ajax on away goals. B1903 merged with Kjøbenhavns BK to become FCK in summer 1992.
• FCK's only success in seven meetings with Italian sides was a 2-1 victory at home against SS Lazio in 2001/02 UEFA Champions League qualifying. Their heaviest European defeat to date was a 6-0 loss at home to another Serie A club, AC Milan, in October 1993.
• FCK have gone four games without a Group B win, and their 4-0 loss to Club Brugge KV on matchday four was their worst home defeat in the UEFA Cup or UEFA Europa League.
• Torino are without a win in their last three European away games – two 0-0 draws and a 2-1 loss.
Trivia and links
• Torino goalkeeper Jean-François Gillet and FCK defender Mikael Antonsson were team-mates at Bologna FC (2011-12).
• FCK defender Kris Stadsgaard also played in Italy, with Reggina Calcio.
• Torino are playing in Europe for the first time since the 2002 UEFA Intertoto Cup.
The coaches
• FCK's Norwegian coach Ståle Solbakken earned 58 caps during a successful playing career, which ended abruptly after he suffered a heart attack. Having won five Danish titles in his first spell as the club's coach, Solbakken returned to FCK in 2013.
• Giampiero Ventura led Torino back to Serie A after taking charge in 2011, and is now enjoying – at the age of 66 – his first season in Europe. Previously a player at UC Sampdoria, he once led US Lecce from Serie C to Serie A, and also oversaw promotion to the top tier with Cagliari Calcio, as well as winning a club record 50 Serie A points with AS Bari in 2009/10.
