UEFA EUROPA LEAGUE 2011/12 SEASON MATCH PRESS KIT AFC Ajax Manchester United FC Matchday 7 - Round of 32, first leg Amsterdam ArenA, Amsterdam Thursday 16 February 2012 19.00CET (19.00 local time) Contents Previous meetings.............................................................................................................2 Match background.............................................................................................................4 Team facts.........................................................................................................................6 Squad list...........................................................................................................................8 Fixtures and results.........................................................................................................10 Match-by-match lineups..................................................................................................14 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 AFC Ajax - Manchester United FC Thursday 16 February 2012 - 19.00CET (19.00 local time) MATCH PRESS KIT Amsterdam ArenA, Amsterdam Previous meetings Head to Head UEFA Cup Date Stage Match Result Venue Goalscorers 29/09/76 R1 Manchester United FC - AFC Ajax 2-0 Manchester Macari 42, McIlroy 65 agg: 2-1 15/09/76 R1 AFC Ajax - Manchester United FC 1-0 Amsterdam Krol 42 Home Away Final Total Pld W D L Pld W D L Pld W D L Pld W D L GF GA AFC Ajax 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 1 1 2 Manchester United FC 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 1 2 1 AFC Ajax - Record versus clubs from opponents' country UEFA Cup Date Stage Match Result Venue Goalscorers 23/10/08 GS Aston Villa FC - AFC Ajax 2-1 Birmingham Laursen 8, Barry 45; Vermaelen 22 UEFA Champions League Date Stage Match Result Venue Goalscorers 07/12/05 GS Arsenal FC - AFC Ajax 0-0 London 27/09/05 GS AFC Ajax - Arsenal FC 1-2 Amsterdam Rosenberg 71; Ljungberg 2, Pirès 69(p) UEFA Champions League Date Stage Match Result Venue Goalscorers 26/02/03 2ndGS AFC Ajax - Arsenal FC 0-0 Amsterdam 18/02/03 2ndGS Arsenal FC - AFC Ajax 1-1 London Wiltord 5; N. De Jong 17 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup Date Stage Match Result Venue Goalscorers 29/09/81 R1 Tottenham Hotspur FC - AFC Ajax 3-0 London Galvin 69, Falco 76, Ardiles 82 agg: 6-1 16/09/81 R1 AFC Ajax - Tottenham Hotspur FC 1-3 Amsterdam Lerby 57; Hoddle 19, Falco 35, Villa 57 European Champion Clubs' Cup Date Stage Match Result Venue Goalscorers 23/04/80 SF AFC Ajax - Nottingham Forest FC 1-0 Amsterdam Lerby 65 agg: 1-2 09/04/80 SF Nottingham Forest FC - AFC Ajax 2-0 Nottingham Francis 33, Robertson 60(p) UEFA Cup Date Stage Match Result Venue Goalscorers 02/10/74 R1 AFC Ajax - Stoke City FC 0-0 Amsterdam agg: 1-1 ag 18/09/74 R1 Stoke City FC - AFC Ajax 1-1 Stoke-on-Trent Smith 78; Krol 27 European Champion Clubs' Cup Date Stage Match Result Venue Goalscorers 22/03/72 QF Arsenal FC - AFC Ajax 0-1 London Graham 16(og) agg: 1-3 08/03/72 QF AFC Ajax - Arsenal FC 2-1 Amsterdam Mühren 27, 74(p); Kennedy 15 European Champion Clubs' Cup Date Stage Match Result Venue Goalscorers 14/12/66 R2 Liverpool FC - AFC Ajax 2-2 Liverpool Hunt 60, 85; Cruyff 50, 70 agg: 3-7 07/12/66 R2 AFC Ajax - Liverpool FC 5-1 Amsterdam De Wolf 3, Cruyff 16, Nuninga 38, 42, Groot 76; Lawler 89 Manchester United FC - Record versus clubs from opponents' country Last updated 15/02/12 10:14:23CET 2 Previous meetings AFC Ajax - Manchester United FC Thursday 16 February 2012 - 19.00CET (19.00 local time) MATCH PRESS KIT Amsterdam ArenA, Amsterdam UEFA Champions League Date Stage Match Result Venue Goalscorers 18/10/00 GS Manchester United FC - PSV Eindhoven 3-1 Manchester Sheringham 8, Scholes 82, Yorke 87; Van Bommel 76 26/09/00 GS PSV Eindhoven - Manchester United FC 3-1 Eindhoven Bouma 17, Van Bommel 38, Kežman 63; Scholes 3(p) UEFA Champions League Date Stage Match Result Venue Goalscorers 05/11/97 GS Feyenoord - Manchester United FC 1-3 Rotterdam Korneev 86; Cole 30, 43, 73 22/10/97 GS Manchester United FC - Feyenoord 2-1 Manchester Scholes 32, Irwin 72; Vos 82 UEFA Cup Date Stage Match Result Venue Goalscorers 07/11/84 R2 Manchester United FC - PSV Eindhoven 1-0 Manchester Strachan 97 ET agg 1-0 (aet) 24/10/84 R2 PSV Eindhoven - Manchester United FC 0-0 Eindhoven UEFA Cup Winners' Cup Date Stage Match Result Venue Goalscorers 15/10/63 PR Manchester United FC - Willem II 6-1 Manchester Setters 7, Law 12, 32, 70, Charlton 63, agg: 7-2 Herd 80; Cantwell 36(og) 25/09/63 PR Willem II - Manchester United FC 1-1 Rotterdam Louer 9; Herd 11 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 AFC Ajax 8 4 2 2 9 1 4 4 0 0 0 0 17 5 6 6 17 20 Manchester United FC 5 5 0 0 5 1 2 2 0 0 0 0 10 6 2 2 19 9 Last updated 15/02/12 10:14:23CET 3 Previous meetings AFC Ajax - Manchester United FC Thursday 16 February 2012 - 19.00CET (19.00 local time) MATCH PRESS KIT Amsterdam ArenA, Amsterdam Match background Two of European football's most famous names meet in the UEFA Europa League round of 32 when AFC Ajax and Manchester United FC will each look to bounce back from the disappointment of early UEFA Champions League elimination. Previous meetings • The teams have met once before in UEFA competition, Tommy Docherty's United prevailing 2-1 on aggregate against Tomislav Ivić's Ajax in the 1976/77 UEFA Cup first round. Ruud Krol scored the only goal in Amsterdam, but Lou Macari and Sammy McIlroy turned the tie around at Old Trafford. • The teams for that first Amsterdam meeting on 15 September 1976 were: Ajax: Schrijvers, Van Dord, Gluić, Dusbaba, Krol, Notten, Hulshoff, Geels, Erkens, Arnesen (Ling 76), Schoenaker (Zuidema 81). United: Stepney, Nicholl, Houston, Daly (McCreery 68), Greenhoff, Buchan, Coppell, McIlroy, Pearson, Macari, Hill. Match background • Ajax have won all three of Europe's top club trophies – the European Champion Clubs' Cup/UEFA Champions League, the UEFA Cup/UEFA Europa League and the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup. United, missing the middle prize, could complete the clean sweep themselves by winning this competition. • Ajax's record in 17 games against English sides is W5 D6 L6 (W4 D2 L2 at home). • The Amsterdam club have not won in seven matches against English opposition (three draws, four defeats). Their last victory was against Nottingham Forest FC in the 1980/81 European Cup semi-finals, albeit the 1-0 scoreline still spelled aggregate defeat for Ajax. • United's record against Dutch teams reads W6 D2 L2 (W1 D2 L2 in the Netherlands). • Ajax are in the last 32 for the fourth season running. They beat ACF Fiorentina in 2008/09, but bowed out in the next round; in 2009/10 they lost to Juventus while last season they overcame RSC Anderlecht, but fell to FC Spartak Moskva at the next hurdle. • Ajax have not reached the last eight of a UEFA competition since 2002/03, when they lost to AC Milan in the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals. • United are absent from the UEFA Champions League round of 16 for the first time since 2005/06. Their last taste of this competition came when losing to SC Rotor Volgograd on away goals in the 1995/96 first round. • All four of United's UEFA Cup games under Sir Alex Ferguson ended in draws: two 0-0s followed by a shoot-out defeat against FC Torpedo Moskva in 1992/93, and a 0-0 and a 2-2 against Rotor two years later. • Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes are the only current United players to have represented the club in the UEFA Cup, featuring in both Rotor fixtures. Team facts • Nicolai Boilesen and Christian Eriksen are Denmark colleagues of Anders Lindegaard. • André Ooijer and Ji-Sung Park were team-mates at PSV Eindhoven from 2002 to 2005, winning Dutch titles together in 2002/03 and 2004/05. Ooijer played against United four times while at Blackburn Rovers FC between 2007 and 2009, losing on each occasion. • Frank de Boer won five Dutch titles, the UEFA Cup and the UEFA Champions League as a defender at Ajax, and the 1998/99 Spanish league with FC Barcelona. Capped 112 times by the Netherlands, he won his first title as a coach with Ajax last season. • Sir Alex has now been United manager for 25 years, leading the club to their record 19th English title last season. Now 70, he won three Scottish titles and the 1982/83 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup with Aberdeen FC before coming to Old Trafford, where his haul includes 12 league crowns, a second UEFA Cup Winners' Cup and two UEFA Champions League triumphs. • De Boer and Sir Alex were both players at Rangers FC; Sir Alex represented his hometown club from 1967 to 1969 while De Boer played at Ibrox in 2004. Round of 16 • The winners will take FC Lokomotiv Moskva or Athletic Club in the round of 16 on 8 and 15 March, playing the first leg at home. Last updated 15/02/12 10:14:23CET 4 Match background AFC Ajax - Manchester United FC Thursday 16 February 2012 - 19.00CET (19.00 local time) MATCH PRESS KIT Amsterdam ArenA, Amsterdam • Ajax have never met Lokomotiv but faced Athletic in the 1978/79 UEFA Cup first round, recovering from a 2-0 away defeat with a 3-0 home win.