Sturm Graz busca primera victoria en UCL ante visita de Girona.

[away]

Girona have so far failed to replicate last season’s form, which handed them an automatic place in the UEFA Champions League, having finished in 3rd place. The visitors, who will be coming off the back of three wins in a row in La Liga, following the weekend’s 4-1 win over Espanyol, have lost three of their matches in the UCL, with the last being Match Day 4’s embarrassing 4-0 defeat to PSV, having gone down to 10 men in the 55th minute. That loss saw Girona drop into 29th place, having earned only three points in the competition [1W, 0D, 3L]. Girona have lost both of their away games in the UEFA Champions League this term, both without scoring a goal and could become the first Spanish side to lose their first three away matches in the competition’s history. Míchel is expected to set up a 3—4—2—1 formation, with Bojan Miovski likely to lead the attack. Girona will have as many as four players missing here, including Portu and Yangel Herrera, while Arnau Martínez is suspended having earned a red card on Match Day 4.

[introduction]

The UEFA Champions League fixture, Sturm Graz vs. Girona, kicks off at 17:45 [GMT] on Wednesday, November 27, at the 28 Black Arena. Referee Rohit Saggi [NOR] will have Clay Ruperti [NED] as the VAR.

[home]

Sturm Graz will be looking to salvage what is left of their European campaign having lost all four opening games. Their most recent defeat came on UCL MD 4, by a narrow margin to Dortmund in a game that ended 1-0. On Wednesday, the home side will be looking to pick up their maiden win in the competition when they host Girona at the 28 Black Arena. Graz are currently in 33rd place ahead of this fixture with Girona, the first-ever encounter between both sides in club history. However, with a torrid record over Spanish opposition, putting an end to their four-game losing run in the competition could see their winless run stretched further. Sturm Graz have never won against a Spanish side in Europe, losing five of their six such matches [0W, 1D, 5L]. Should Graz lose here, it’d be the most consecutive defeats they’ve suffered from the start of a single campaign in major European competition [5, excluding qualifiers]. A 4—2—2—2 with Mika Biereth and Seedy Jatta in attack is expected for the midweek UCL clash against Girona. Interim manager Jürgen Säumel will be in charge following the sacking of manager Christian Ilzer and will be without Jon Gorenc Stankovic, who is Graz’s only injury concern heading into Wednesday’s fixture.