Stakes rising for Lazio and Zürich

S.S. Lazio and FC Zürich have one less qualifying place to play for after Sporting Clube de Portugal ensured they would finish in the top two in UEFA Europa League Group D on matchday three. Previous meetings • The sides drew 1-1 as they met for the first time in UEFA competition on matchday three, Adrian Nikci (23) responding within 60 seconds of Giuseppe Sculli (22) giving Lazio the lead. • Sporting secured one of the top two places the same night by beating FC Vaslui 2-0. They are the first side ever to have confirmed a place in the UEFA Europa League knockout stages after three group stage fixtures. • Lazio's record in five games against Swiss sides is W1 D3 L1 (W1 D1 L0 in Rome). • Zürich's record in nine matches against Italian clubs reads W2 D3 L4 (W1 D0 L3 in Italy). They caused a major stir by winning 1-0 at AC Milan in the 2009/10 UEFA Champions League group stage. Match background • Lazio have won just one of their six UEFA Cup and UEFA Europa League group stage home games with their record over three campaigns reading W1 D3 L2. Their only victory in Rome came against Villarreal CF on matchday three of the 2009/10 UEFA Europa League – they won 2-1. • Zürich have gone five fixtures without a European win. A 2-2 draw at FC Vaslui on matchday two ended a three-game losing streak. • Zürich have not won in their last 11 UEFA Europa League and UEFA Cup games (five draws and six defeats) since a 2-0 win against Toulouse FC in the 2007/08 group stage. Team facts • This is Zürich's 50th game in the UEFA Cup and UEFA Europa League. Their previous 49 have ended W17 D11 L21. • Zürich boast Italian talent in the form of goalkeeper Andrea Guatelli, who started his career as a trainee at hometown club Parma FC, and represented US Fiorenzuola 1922 on loan before moving to England with Portsmouth FC in 2004. • Lazio's Bosnian left-back Senad Luli? played in Switzerland with AC Bellinzona, Grasshopper-Club and BSC Young Boys before moving to Rome this summer. His record in nine games against Zürich is W2 D3 L4. • Zürich midfielder Ludovic Magnin and Lazio striker Miroslav Klose were team-mates at SV Werder Bremen in 2004/05. • Zürich boss Urs Fischer joined the club as a youth player in the early 1970s, played for them as a defender in two spells (1984-87 and 1996-2003) and took charge of the club as coach in 2010, following a spell as assistant to Bernard Challandes in 2007/08. • Once a midfield colleague of Fabio Capello's at SPAL 1907, Lazio boss Edoardo Reja has been coaching since 1979, but did not make his Serie A debut until 1998, and had to wait another decade to make his European debut with SSC Napoli.