UEFA EUROPA LEAGUE 2011/12 SEASON MATCH PRESS KIT Udinese Calcio (first leg: 0-2) AZ Alkmaar Matchday 10 - round of 16, second leg Stadio Friuli, Udine Thursday 15 March 2012 19.00CET (19.00 local time) Contents Previous meetings.............................................................................................................2 Match background.............................................................................................................3 Team facts.........................................................................................................................4 Squad list...........................................................................................................................6 Fixtures and results...........................................................................................................8 Match-by-match lineups..................................................................................................12 Match officials..................................................................................................................16 Legend............................................................................................................................17 This press kit includes information relating to this UEFA Europa League match. For more detailed factual information, and in-depth competition statistics, please refer to the matchweek press kit, which can be downloaded at: http://www.uefa.com/uefa/mediaservices/presskits/index.html Udinese Calcio - AZ Alkmaar Thursday 15 March 2012 - 19.00CET (19.00 local time) MATCH PRESS KIT Stadio Friuli, Udine Previous meetings Head to Head UEFA Europa League Date Stage Match Result Venue Goalscorers 08/03/12 R16 AZ Alkmaar - Udinese Calcio 2-0 Alkmaar Martens 63, Falkenburg 84 Home Away Final Total Pld W D L Pld W D L Pld W D L Pld W D L GF GA Udinese Calcio 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 2 AZ Alkmaar 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 2 0 Udinese Calcio - Record versus clubs from opponents' country UEFA Cup Date Stage Match Result Venue Goalscorers 18/12/08 GS NEC Nijmegen - Udinese Calcio 2-0 Nijmegen John 75, Van Beukering 78 UEFA Cup Date Stage Match Result Venue Goalscorers 04/11/97 R2 Udinese Calcio - AFC Ajax 2-1 Udine Poggi 25, Bierhoff 32; Arveladze 81 agg: 2-2 ag 21/10/97 R2 AFC Ajax - Udinese Calcio 1-0 Amsterdam Dani 28 AZ Alkmaar - Record versus clubs from opponents' country UEFA Cup Winners' Cup Date Stage Match Result Venue Goalscorers 03/11/82 R2 FC Internazionale Milano - AZ Alkmaar 2-0 Milan Juary 4, Altobelli 68 agg: 2-1 20/10/82 R2 AZ Alkmaar - FC Internazionale Milano 1-0 Alkmaar Reijnders 5 Record versus clubs from opponents' country Home Away Final Total Pld W D L Pld W D L Pld W D L Pld W D L GF GA Udinese Calcio 1 1 0 0 3 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 4 1 0 3 2 6 AZ Alkmaar 2 2 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 3 2 0 1 3 2 Last updated 14/03/12 13:50:04CET 2 Previous meetings Udinese Calcio - AZ Alkmaar Thursday 15 March 2012 - 19.00CET (19.00 local time) MATCH PRESS KIT Stadio Friuli, Udine Match background Having gone nine games without defeat at home in this competition, Udinese Calcio welcome AZ Alkmaar, hoping to make a return to the UEFA Europa League quarter-finals after a three-year absence. • Jozy Altidore set up Maarten Martens (63) and Erik Falkenburg (84) as AZ won the first leg 2-0 in Alkmaar, with Samir Handanovič keeping his side in the tie with two late saves. Previous meetings • The teams have been paired for the first time in UEFA club competition. • AZ have played only one previous tie against an Italian club, losing out to FC Internazionale Milano in the 1982/83 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup second round, winning 1-0 at home but going down 2-0 at San Siro. • Udinese have now played four games against Dutch clubs, with the record W1 D0 L3 (W1 D0 L0 at home – W0 D0 L3 in the Netherlands). They have yet to score a goal on Dutch soil, and need to improve on their only previous home result against a Dutch side – a 2-1 win against AFC Ajax – if they are to make it to the last eight. Match background • AZ are on a ten-match unbeaten run in Europe − five victories and five draws. • Udinese are unbeaten in nine home games in this competition – six wins and three draws – since a 2-0 loss against Borussia Dortmund in the 2008/09 UEFA Cup first round. • AZ's 1-0 win at RSC Anderlecht in the round of 32 ended a 15-game wait for a European away win (seven draws, eight defeats) since beating FC Paços de Ferreira 1-0 in the UEFA Cup first round on 20 September 2007. • The Kaaskoppen (Cheeseheads) are playing European football in the spring for the first time since 2006/07, when they beat Fenerbahçe SK and Newcastle United FC before bowing out to SV Werder Bremen in the UEFA Cup quarter-finals. • This is Udinese's third tilt at the round of 16; they lost out to PFC Levski Sofia in 2005/06 but overcame FC Zenit St Petersburg to reach the 2008/09 quarter-finals. Team facts • Eight of AZ's 14 UEFA Europa League goals have come between the 16th and 45th minutes of the first half. • Udinese are the lowest scoring side to have reached this stage, having hit just nine goals in nine games since the start of the UEFA Europa League group stage - and average of one per game. • Udinese's Brazilian defender Neuton turns 22 on the eve of this game. • AZ midfielder Rasmus Elm turns 24 on Saturday 17 March. • Udinese defender Joel Ekstrand and AZ midfielder Rasmus Elm played together with Sweden as they hosted the 2009 UEFA Under-21 European Championships. • Udinese coach Francesco Guidolin spent the bulk of his playing days with Hellas-Verona FC. His coaching career included a stint in France at AS Monaco FC in 2005/06. Since then he has been in charge of US Città di Palermo and Parma FC, taking over for a second spell at Udinese in 2010. He successfully guided Monaco through the 2005/06 UEFA Cup group stage but missed out with Palermo the following season. • AZ coach Gertjan Verbeek spent most of his playing career as a defender at sc Heerenveen, barring a season on loan at Heracles Almelo in 1986/87. He has twice coached Heracles (2001-04 and 2009-10) either side of stints in charge of Heerenveen (2004-08) and, briefly, Feyenoord in 2008/09. AZ brought him in at the start of 2010/11. Competition statistics • An updated version of the UEFA Europa League Statistics Handbook is available here: http://www.uefa.com/uefaeuropaleague/news/newsid=1750416.html Last updated 14/03/12 13:50:04CET 3 Match background Udinese Calcio - AZ Alkmaar Thursday 15 March 2012 - 19.00CET (19.00 local time) MATCH PRESS KIT Stadio Friuli, Udine Team facts Udinese Calcio Formed: 1896 Nicknames: Bianconeri (White-and-blacks), Zebrette (Little zebras) UEFA club competition honours (runners-up in brackets) • UEFA Intertoto Cup: 2000 Domestic honours (most recent triumph in brackets) None Ten-year European record (UEFA Cup/UEFA Europa League unless otherwise stated) 2010/11: did not take part in UEFA club competition 2009/10: did not take part in UEFA club competition 2008/09: quarter-finals 2007/08: did not take part in UEFA club competition 2006/07: did not take part in UEFA club competition 2005/06: round of 16 (having transferred from UEFA Champions League group stage) 2004/05: first round 2003/04: first round 2002/03: did not take part in UEFA club competition 2001/02: did not take part in UEFA club competition Records UEFA club competition • Biggest home win 3-0: three times, most recently v RC Lens 15/02/06, UEFA Cup round of 32 first leg • Biggest away win 0-3: PAOK FC v Udinese 23/02/12, UEFA Europa League round of 32 second leg • Heaviest home defeat 0-2: twice, most recently v Borussia Dortmund 02/10/08, UEFA Cup first round second leg • Heaviest away defeat 4-0: Club Atlético de Madrid v Udinese 03/11/11, UEFA Europa League group stage UEFA Cup/UEFA Europa League • Biggest home win 3-0 three times, most recently v RC Lens (see above) • Biggest away win 0-3: PAOK FC v Udinese (see above) • Heaviest home defeat 0-2: Udinese v BV Borussia Dortmund (see above) • Heaviest away defeat 4-0: Club Atlético de Madrid v Udinese (see above) Last updated 14/03/12 13:50:04CET 4 Team facts Udinese Calcio - AZ Alkmaar Thursday 15 March 2012 - 19.00CET (19.00 local time) MATCH PRESS KIT Stadio Friuli, Udine AZ Alkmaar Formed: 1967 Nickname: Kaaskoppen (Cheeseheads) UEFA club competition honours (runners-up in brackets) • UEFA Cup: (1981) Domestic honours (most recent triumph in brackets) League title: 2 (2009) Dutch Cup: 3 (1982) Ten-year European record (UEFA Cup/UEFA Europa League unless indicated otherwise) 2010/11: group stage 2009/10: UEFA Champions League group stage 2008/09: did not take part in UEFA club competition 2007/08: group stage 2006/07: quarter-finals 2005/06: round of 32 2004/05: semi-finals 2003/04: did not take part in UEFA club competition 2002/03: did not take part in UEFA club competition 2001/02: did not take part in UEFA club competition Records UEFA club competition • Biggest home win 11-1: AZ v FC Differdange 03 14/09/77, UEFA Cup first round first leg • Biggest away win 0-5: FC Differdange 03 v AZ 27/09/77, UEFA Cup first round second leg • Heaviest home defeat 2-3: AZ v Everton FC 20/12/07, UEFA Cup group stage 1-2: AZ v FC Dynamo Kyiv 21/10/10, UEFA Europa League group stage • Heaviest away defeat 4-1 on three occasions, most recently v FC BATE Borisov 30/09/10, UEFA Europa League group stage 3-0: Ipswich Town FC v AZ 06/05/81, UEFA Cup final first leg UEFA Europa League/UEFA Cup • Biggest home win 11-1: AZ v FC Differdange 03 (see above) • Biggest away win 0-5: FC Differdange 03 v AZ (see above) • Heaviest home defeat 2-3: AZ v Everton FC (see above) 1-2: AZ v FC Dynamo Kyiv (see above) • Heaviest away defeat 4-1: FC BATE Borisov v AZ (see above) 4-1: Werder Bremen v AZ 12/04/07, quarter-final second leg 3-0: Ipswich Town FC v AZ (see above) Last updated 14/03/12 13:50:04CET 5 Team facts Udinese Calcio - AZ Alkmaar Thursday 15 March 2012 - 19.00CET (19.00 local time) MATCH PRESS KIT Stadio Friuli, Udine Squad list Udinese Calcio Current season All-time QUAL Tournament League Tournament UEFA No.