UEFA EUROPA LEAGUE - 2017/18 SEASON MATCH PRESS KITS Astana Arena - Astana Thursday 15 February 2018 17.00CET (22.00 local time) FC Astana Sporting Clube de Round of 32, First leg Portugal Last updated 13/04/2018 12:19CET Previous meetings 2 Match background 3 Team facts 5 Squad list 7 Fixtures and results 11 Match-by-match lineups 15 Match officials 18 Legend 19 1 FC Astana - Sporting Clube de Portugal Thursday 15 February 2018 - 17.00CET (22.00 local time) Match press kit Astana Arena, Astana Previous meetings Head to Head No UEFA competition matches have been played between these two teams FC Astana - Record versus clubs from opponents' country UEFA Champions League Date Stage Match Result Venue Goalscorers Twumasi 19, Aničić 25/11/2015 GS FC Astana - SL Benfica 2-2 Astana 31; Jiménez 40, 72 Gaitán 51, Mitroglou 15/09/2015 GS SL Benfica - FC Astana 2-0 Lisbon 62 Sporting Clube de Portugal - Record versus clubs from opponents' country Sporting Clube de Portugal have not played against a club from their opponents' country Home Away Final Total Pld W D L Pld W D L Pld W D L Pld W D L GF GA FC Astana 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 1 1 2 4 Sporting Clube de Portugal 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 FC Astana - Sporting Clube de Portugal Thursday 15 February 2018 - 17.00CET (22.00 local time) Match press kit Astana Arena, Astana Match background Sporting CP make the long, continent-spanning journey from Lisbon to Astana to take on the champions of Kazakhstan in the first leg of the UEFA Europa League round of 32. • FC Astana are the first Kazakh club to participate in the knockout phase of a UEFA club competition. They claimed their place as runners-up to Villarreal in Group A, while Sporting dropped into the UEFA Europa League after finishing third behind Barcelona and Juventus in their UEFA Champions League group. Previous meetings • There have been no previous meetings between the two clubs, and Sporting have never faced opposition from Kazakhstan. • Astana took on Sporting's city rivals Benfica in the 2015/16 UEFA Champions League. They made their group stage debut in Lisbon, losing 2-0 before drawing the return fixture 2-2 in Astana – letting slip a two-goal lead. Current players Patrick Twumasi and Marin Aničić scored the home team's goals. Form guide • Defeat in the Astana Arena against Villarreal on matchday five (2-3) ended a 17-game unbeaten European home run for Astana (W9 D8) – since they lost 3-0 to the same opponents in the 2014/15 UEFA Europa League play-offs. They recovered, however, to win 1-0 at Slavia Praha on matchday six and secure their historic qualification for the round of 32 at their hosts' expense. • Astana have found the net in each of their last eight European home fixtures, scoring 18 goals over that period at an average of 2.25 per game. • Sporting have lost six of their last eight European away fixtures – and 18 of their last 26 (W3 D5). They have won only one of their last 15 games outside Lisbon in the UEFA Europa League, play-offs included, losing ten. • The Lions, who finished runners-up in the 2004/05 UEFA Cup, losing the final in their own stadium to CSKA Moskva (1-3), are playing in the UEFA Europa League round of 32 for the sixth time. They have won two of their previous five ties at this stage – against Everton in 2009/10 and Legia Warszawa in 2011/12 – but lost the last two, in 2015 and 2016. Sporting have never won the away leg at this stage of the competition (D2 L3). • Beaten 8-4 on aggregate by Celtic in the UEFA Champions League play-offs (0-5 away, 4-3 home), Astana have made it through to the spring phase of European competition for the first time, having played continental group stage football three autumns running: UEFA Champions League in 2015/16 and UEFA Europa League in 2016/17 and 2017/18. • Sporting finished third in last season's Portuguese Liga and reached the UEFA Champions League group stage with a 5-1 win away to Romanian side FCSB in the play-offs, which clinched an aggregate success by the same margin. UEFA Europa League squad changes • Astana In: Yuriy Pertsukh, Baktiyor Zainutdinov, Marko Stanojević Out: Askhat Tagybergen, Junior Kabananga • Sporting In: Fredy Montero, Rúben Ribeiro, Bryan Ruiz Out: Gelson Dala, Mattheus Oliveira, Tobias Figueiredo, Iuri Medeiros, Alan Ruiz, Jonathan Silva Links and trivia • At 6,171km, the journey from Lisbon to Astana is one of the longest in European football. • Although this is Sporting's first match in Kazakhstan, the Lions' futsal team appeared in the final four of the 2010/11 UEFA Futsal Cup in Almaty, where they finished runners-up to Italian side Montesilvano. • Sporting's Stefan Ristovski and Astana's Marin Tomasov played together at Rijeka in 2015/16. • Sporting's Bas Dost and Astana's Ivan Maevski faced each other in October 2017 as the Netherlands beat Belarus 3-1 in 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying. • Astana clinched their fourth successive Kazakh Premier League title on 5 November 2017, finishing one point ahead of perennial rivals Kairat Almaty. • Sporting's transfer from the UEFA Champions League means they have participated in seven of the nine UEFA Europa League campaigns. Only Ajax (eight appearances) have been involved in more. • Sporting's Portuguese international goalkeeper – and UEFA EURO 2016 winner – Rui Patrício could celebrate a special birthday a long way from home as he turns 30 on the day of the game. 3 FC Astana - Sporting Clube de Portugal Thursday 15 February 2018 - 17.00CET (22.00 local time) Match press kit Astana Arena, Astana • Astana's Serikhan Muzhikov is suspended for this fixture. • Suspended from next match if booked: Igor Shitov (Astana); Marcos Acuña, Fábio Coentrão, Gelson Martins, Bruno Fernandes (Sporting). The coaches • Recruited in June 2014, Stanimir Stoilov led Astana to their fourth successive Kazakh title last November. The former Bulgaria midfielder and national team coach enjoyed his most fruitful years as a player at Levski Sofia, whom he later guided to two national championships as well as the 2005/06 UEFA Cup quarter-finals and the following season's UEFA Champions League group stage. • Jorge Jesus was lured to Sporting from Lisbon rivals Benfica in 2015 after six seasons as head coach with the Eagles that brought nine domestic trophies, including three Liga titles, plus two runners-up berths in the UEFA Europa League – in 2012/13 to Chelsea and 2013/14 to Sevilla. His relatively discreet playing career started with Sporting in the early 1970s. 4 FC Astana - Sporting Clube de Portugal Thursday 15 February 2018 - 17.00CET (22.00 local time) Match press kit Astana Arena, Astana Team facts FC Astana Formed: 2009 Nickname: The Blue and Yellows UEFA club competition honours (runners-up in brackets) • None Domestic honours (most recent triumph in brackets) Domestic title: 4 (2017) Kazakhstan Cup: 3 (2016) Ten-year European record (UEFA Europa League/UEFA Cup unless indicated otherwise) 2016/17: group stage (having transferred from UEFA Champions League third qualifying round) 2015/16: UEFA Champions League group stage 2014/15: play-offs 2013/14: first qualifying round 2012/13: did not take part in UEFA club competition 2011/12: did not take part in UEFA club competition 2010/11: did not take part in UEFA club competition 2009/10: did not take part in UEFA club competition 2008/09: did not take part in UEFA club competition 2007/08: did not take part in UEFA club competition Records UEFA club competition • Biggest home win 4-0: Astana v Maccabi Tel-Aviv 19/10/17, UEFA Europa League group stage • Biggest away win 1-4: Pyunik v Astana 03/07/14, UEFA Europa League first qualifying round first leg 0-3: AIK Solna v Astana 07/08/14, UEFA Europa League third qualifying round second leg • Heaviest home defeat 0-3: Astana v Villarreal 21/08/14, UEFA Europa League play-off first leg • Heaviest away defeat 5-0: Botev Plovdiv v Astana 11/07/13, UEFA Europa League first qualifying round second leg 5-0: Celtic v Astana 16/08/17, UEFA Champions League play-off first leg UEFA Europa League/UEFA Cup • Biggest home win 4-0: Astana v Maccabi Tel-Aviv (see above) • Biggest away win 1-4: Pyunik v Astana (see above) 0-3: AIK Solna v Astana (see above) • Heaviest home defeat 0-3: Astana v Villarreal (see above) • Heaviest away defeat 5-0: Botev Plovdiv v Astana (see above) Sporting Clube de Portugal Formed: 1906 Nickname: Leões (Lions) UEFA club competition honours (runners-up in brackets) • UEFA Cup: (2005) 5 FC Astana - Sporting Clube de Portugal Thursday 15 February 2018 - 17.00CET (22.00 local time) Match press kit Astana Arena, Astana • UEFA Cup Winners' Cup (1): 1964 Domestic honours (most recent triumph in brackets) League title: 18 (2002) Portuguese Cup: 16 (2015) Ten-year European record (UEFA Cup/UEFA Europa League unless indicated otherwise) 2016/17: UEFA Champions League group stage 2015/16: round of 32 (having transferred from UEFA Champions League play-offs) 2014/15: round of 32 (having transferred from UEFA Champions League group stage) 2013/14: did not take part in UEFA competition 2012/13: group stage 2011/12: semi-finals 2010/11: round of 32 2009/10: round of 16 (having transferred from the UEFA Champions League play-offs) 2008/09: UEFA Champions League round of 16 2007/08: quarter-finals (having transferred from the UEFA Champions League group stage) Records UEFA club competition • Biggest home win 16-1: Sporting CP v APOEL 13/11/63, European Cup Winners' Cup second round first leg • Biggest away win 0-9: ÍA Akranes v Sporting CP 17/09/86, UEFA Cup first round first leg • Heaviest