Overview
Sturm Graz remain a force in the Austrian national championship, leading the rankings after the first 14 rounds. They are 5 points ahead of their nearest rival, Rapid Wien.
However, the Merkur Arena team is not highly regarded in the European arena with modest achievements. After the first 4 matches in this year's Champions League, coach Christian Ilzer's team lost all, scoring only 1 goal and conceding 6 times.
Meanwhile, Girona just defeated Espanyol 4-1 in their most recent match. The brilliance of Gil, Miovski and Krejci extended their winning streak in La Liga to 3 matches.
This is considered a great source of motivation for them to enter the away match at Sturm Graz with the goal of improving their performance in the Champions League. Before that, coach Michel's team only won 1 match against Slovan Bratislava and lost to PSG, Feyenoord, PSV.
Girona has a squad with many names in good form such as the striker pair Christian Stuani and Bojan Miovski. Besides, Gil, Miguel Gutierrez, Arnau Martinez and Herrera also have had relatively convincing performances in recent matches.
With a higher rated force, Girona will have more opportunities to defeat Sturm Graz, thereby winning the second victory in this year's Champions League.
The two teams have never faced each other in a competitive match. However, Sturm Graz have a poor record against Spanish sides, with five defeats and one draw in six meetings with Real Madrid, Valencia and Real Sociedad.
Human resources situation
Sturm Graz are concerned about the fitness of Gregory Wuthrich, while Alexandar Borkovic and Jon Gorenc Stankovic remain absent along with striker Manprit Sarkaria.
On the other side of the front line, Arnau Martinez is suspended after receiving a red card against PSV. Meanwhile, Yangel Herrera, Gabriel Misehouy, Portu and Ricard Artero are injured. Striker Abel Ruiz is also a doubt after missing last weekend.
Expected lineup:
Sturm Graz: Scherpen, Gazibegovic, Aiwu, Lavalee, Johnston, Chukwuani, Kiteishvili, Boving, Yalcouye, Biereth, Jatta.
Girona: Gazzaniga, Blind, Krejci, Lopez, Juanpe, Martin, Romeu, Gutierrez, Van de Beek, Gil, Miovski.
The match between Sturm Graz and Girona takes place at 0:45 am on November 28 (Vietnam time).
