UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE - 2014/15 SEASON MATCH PRESS KITS Anfield - Liverpool Tuesday 9 December 2014 20.45CET (19.45 local time) Liverpool FC Group B - Matchday 6 FC Basel 1893 Last updated 29/05/2015 04:50CET UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE OFFICIAL SPONSORS Match background 2 Legend 4 1 Liverpool FC - FC Basel 1893 Tuesday 9 December 2014 - 20.45CET (19.45 local time) Match press kit Anfield, Liverpool Match background A place in the last 16 of the UEFA Champions League is up for grabs when Liverpool FC and FC Basel 1893 meet at Anfield on matchday six. • Second in Group B with a two-point advantage over the Reds, Basel need only draw to secure their first knockout- stage appearance since 2011/12. Liverpool require three points to reach the round of 16 for the first time since 2008/09. Previous meetings • In the 2002/03 first group stage, Basel drew 1-1 at Anfield on matchday two. They then led Liverpool 3-0 at home on matchday six only for the Reds to earn a 3-3 draw with a second-half fightback. Steven Gerrard played in both games but was substituted at half-time in Basel. • For Liverpool, the 3-3 result was not enough – Basel still pipped them to second place in the group by a point. • The lineups at Anfield on 25 September 2002 were: Liverpool: Dudek, Carragher, Henchoz, Hyypiä, Riise, Murphy, Gerrard, Cheyrou, Heskey (Diouf 71), Owen (Berger 79), Baroš. Basel: Zuberbühler, Haas, M Yakin, Quennoz, Atouba, Barberis, Cantaluppi, H Yakin (Duruz 67), Esposito, Rossi (Tum 74), Giménez. Match background Liverpool • Liverpool have gone four games without a win in the UEFA Champions League since defeating PFC Ludogorets Razgrad with a stoppage-time Gerrard penalty on matchday one. The last time the Reds went five European games without a win was the 2001/02 second group stage. • This match falls almost ten years ago to the day since Liverpool last played a win-or-bust final group fixture at Anfield in the UEFA Champions League. On 8 December 2004 they came from behind to beat Olympiacos FC 3-1, Gerrard scoring their third goal, and went on to win the trophy. • Liverpool suffered their heaviest European home defeat when losing 3-0 to Real Madrid CF on matchday three. Indeed, the Reds have lost four of their last six UEFA Champions League games at Anfield. • Liverpool drew 2-2 with BSC Young Boys when last hosting Swiss opposition in the 2012/13 UEFA Europa League group stage. Martin Škrtel and Jordan Henderson started, Gerrard and Raheem Sterling coming off the bench. • The Premier League side's home record against Swiss clubs is W3 D2 L0. • If Liverpool win they will qualify with seven points, the same total they achieved in their last group stage campaign in 2009/10 when they finished third. Basel • Basel are still seeking their first away points after defeats at Madrid (1-5) and Ludogorets (0-1). • In five previous campaigns in the UEFA Champions League and four in the UEFA Europa League, Basel have always taken at least one point on their travels. • Basel have won their last four games against Premier League opposition in the UEFA Champions League, including the 1-0 home success against Liverpool on matchday two. Indeed, they have lost just once in nine meetings with English opposition in the competition. • The Swiss title holders earned their first win in England at the tenth attempt when beating Chelsea FC 2-1 at Stamford Bridge in last season's group stage. Their overall record on English soil is W1 D4 L6. Coach and player links • Brendan Rodgers replaced Paulo Sousa as manager of Swansea City AFC in July 2010 after the Portuguese left for Leicester City FC. • The managers met twice in the English second division, both matches finishing goalless: Swansea City (Sousa) 0-0 Reading FC (Rodgers), August 2009 Queens Park Rangers FC (Sousa) 0-0 Watford FC (Rodgers), December 2008 • Henderson, Sterling and substitute Rickie Lambert played in England's 2-0 UEFA EURO 2016 qualifying win in Switzerland on 8 September. Fabian Frei and Fabian Schär were unused Swiss substitutes. • Philipp Degen made seven league appearances for Liverpool (2008–10). 2 Liverpool FC - FC Basel 1893 Tuesday 9 December 2014 - 20.45CET (19.45 local time) Match press kit Anfield, Liverpool • Ivan Ivanov and Lazar Marković were FK Partizan team-mates (2011–13). • Walter Samuel and Mario Balotelli won the UEFA Champions League with FC Internazionale Milano (2010). • Balotelli was sent off playing for Italy against Marek Suchý's Czech Republic in a goalless 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifier in Prague in June 2013. Three months later he hit the winner in the Turin return. • Mamadou Sakho was in the France side that beat Switzerland 5-2 in the 2014 World Cup group stage. Schär was an unused Swiss substitute. • Yoichiro Kakitani scored past Simon Mignolet in Japan's 3-2 friendly victory in Belgium in November 2013. • Marcelo Díaz was in the Chile team that triumphed 2-0 against an England side including Glen Johnson, Adam Lallana and substitute Henderson in the same month. • Sterling made his England debut against a Sweden side featuring substitute Behrang Safari in a 4-2 friendly success for the Swedes in November 2012. • Ivanov was an unused substitute in PFC CSKA Sofia's 1-0 second-leg win at Liverpool in a 2005/06 UEFA Champions League third qualifying round tie (2-3 aggregate). Match facts Liverpool • Liverpool have lost six of their 15 Premier League games this season, as many defeats as they suffered in the whole of 2013/14. • Liverpool were held 0-0 by Sunderland AFC on Saturday and have won just five out of 12 at home this season. • Johnson's first goal since 9 December 2012 earned Liverpool a 1-0 home win against Stoke City FC on 29 November. • The Reds registered back-to-back victories for only the second time this term when they triumphed 3-1 at strugglers Leicester City FC on 2 December. • Balotelli has not played since sustaining a hamstring injury training with Italy on 15 November. • Daniel Sturridge − out since breaking down on England duty at the start of September − returned to full training early last month but picked up a new thigh injury in training on 18 November and was ruled out for another six weeks. Liverpool have won just six of their 19 matches without him. Basel • Geoffroy Serey Die is available after serving a two-game ban. Derlis González, Taulant Xhaka, Suchý and Schär are all a booking away from a suspension. • Basel have won seven of their last eight games and have conceded just twice in their last seven. • Matías Delgado was on target twice – his first goals since August – as Basel won 3-0 at the Swiss Super League's bottom side FC Luzern on Saturday. • Swiss Super League leaders Basel won 2-1 at second-placed FC Zürich on 30 November. • Shkelzen Gashi − the Swiss top flight's 19-goal leading marksman last term for Grasshopper Club − has scored eight in as many outings in all competitions. • Having missed ten matches due to a slipped disc, Marco Streller returned to action against Zürich. • Giovanni Sio is sidelined with a knee injury. • Ivan Ivanov, out since January because of a knee problem, is Basel's only long-term absentee. On 15 September he underwent another operation and is expected to be unavailable for a further six months. 3 Liverpool FC - FC Basel 1893 Tuesday 9 December 2014 - 20.45CET (19.45 local time) Match press kit Anfield, Liverpool Legend ALL-TIME STATISTICS The all-time record of the competing clubs in UEFA club competition. UEFA club competition: These are the official statistics considered valid for communicating official records in UEFA club competition defined as European Champion Clubs' Cup, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, UEFA Cup Winner's Cup UEFA Super Cup, UEFA Intertoto Cup and European/South American Cup. Matches in the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup and the 1972 Super Cup are not included as they were not held under UEFA auspices, while the FIFA Club World Cup is excluded. Match officials UCL: Total matches officiated in the UEFA Champions League from 1992/93 season, group stage to final only. Matches where the official has acted as the fourth official are not included in these statistics. These are the official statistics considered valid for communicating official records. UEFA: Total matches officiated in UEFA club competition including all qualifying round matches. Matches where the official has acted as the fourth official are not included in these statistics. These are the official statistics considered valid for communicating official records. Competitions Club competitions National team competitions UCL: UEFA Champions League EURO: UEFA European Football Championship ECCC: European Champion Clubs' Cup WC: FIFA World Cup UEL: UEFA Europa League CONFCUP: FIFA Confederations Cup UCUP: UEFA Cup FRIE: Friendly internationals UCWC: UEFA Cup Winners' Cup U21FRIE: Under-21 friendly internationals SCUP: UEFA Super Cup U21: UEFA European Under-21 Championship UIC: UEFA Intertoto Cup U17: UEFA Under-17 Championship ICF: Inter-Cities Fairs Cup U16: UEFA European Under-16 Championship U19: UEFA Under-19 Championship U18: UEFA European Under-18 Championship WWC: FIFA Women's World Cup WEURO: UEFA European Women's Championship Competition stages Other abbreviations F: Final GS: Group stage (aet): After extra time pens: Penalties GS1: First group stage GS2: Second group stage No.: Number og: Own goal 3QR: Third qualifying round R1: First round ag: Match decided on away P: Penalty R2: Second round R3: Third round goals agg: Aggregate R4: Fourth round PR: Preliminary round Pld: Matches played AP: Appearances