Skip to main content

Tough tests for Napoli and Porto in play-offs

SSC Napoli and FC Porto drew Athletic Club and LOSC Lille in the UEFA Champions League play-offs while Arsenal FC face a Turkish team for the second year running.


SSC Napoli and FC Porto face tough tasks to return to the UEFA Champions League group stage having been paired with Athletic Club and LOSC Lille respectively in the play-off draw in Nyon.

Both Napoli and Porto were eliminated in the group stage last season and, having finished third in Serie A and the Portuguese Liga respectively in 2013/14, must now overcome LOSC – third in Ligue 1 last term – and the Spanish Liga's fourth-placed side Athletic, whose sole previous group appearance came in 1998/99.

For the second season running Arsenal FC face Turkish opposition at this juncture. Twelve months ago they defeated Fenerbahçe SK in the play-offs; now they have been pitted against Beşiktaş JK, whose fifth and last group stage campaign came in 2009/10. Elsewhere in the league route, Danish runners-up FC København take on Bayer 04 Leverkusen and R. Standard de Liège play FC Zenit. The last two met in the 2007/08 UEFA Cup first round, when Zenit won 4-1 on aggregate and went on to lift the trophy.

That tie is the only one of the ten play-off fixtures in which the teams have encountered each other before. In the champions route, Sweden's Malmö FF, PFC Ludogorets Razgrad of Bulgaria and Slovak title holders ŠK Slovan Bratislava need to negotiate FC Salzburg, FC Steaua Bucureşti and FC BATE Borisov to earn a first group appearance. Celtic FC, restored to the competition after Legia Warszawa were excluded, tackle Slovenia's NK Maribor.

UEFA Champions League play-offs
LEAGUE ROUTE
Beşiktaş JK (TUR) v Arsenal FC (ENG) - 19/27 August
R. Standard de Liège (BEL) v FC Zenit (RUS) - 20/26 August
FC København (DEN) v Bayer 04 Leverkusen (GER) - 19/27 August
LOSC Lille (FRA) v FC Porto (POR) - 20/26 August
SSC Napoli (ITA) v Athletic Club (ESP) - 19/27 August

CHAMPIONS ROUTE
NK Maribor (SVN) v Celtic FC (SCO) - 20/26 August
FC Salzburg (AUT) v Malmö FF (SWE)-  19/27 August
Aalborg BK (DEN) v APOEL FC (CYP) - 20/26 August
FC Steaua Bucureşti (ROU) v PFC Ludogorets Razgrad (BUL) - 19/27 August
ŠK Slovan Bratislava (SVK) v FC BATE Borisov (BLR) - 20/26 August

The ten winners of the play-off round ties join 22 automatic entrants in the group stage draw in Monaco on 28 August. The ten losers go into the UEFA Europa League group stage.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Mario Balotelli: AC Milan reject claims the striker is about to leave

AC Milan have released a statement to deny speculation that Italy striker Mario Balotelli could leave in January. They were responding to reports in Italy that Milan president Silvio Berlusconi had decided to sell him. "AC Milan firmly and absolutely deny statements that have been attributed to the chairman about Mario Balotelli being put on the transfer list," the Serie A club's statement  said . The ex-Man City striker has scored six goals in 12 league games this season. He moved to the San Siro in January for an initial fee of 22m euros (£19m). Last season he racked up 12 goals for the seven-time European champions in only 13 Serie A appearances.
Post a Comment
Read more

Al-Jazeera demands Egypt release four journalists

  Qatar-based broadcaster Al-Jazeera has demanded the release of four of its journalists seized by Egyptian police in Cairo at the weekend. They include its Cairo bureau chief Mohamed Fadel Fahmy and former BBC correspondent Peter Greste. The journalists had held illegal meetings with the Muslim Brotherhood, the interior ministry said. Al-Jazeera said it had been "subject to harassment" although not officially banned from working in Egypt. There has been a crackdown on the Muslim Brotherhood since the army ousted President Mohammed Morsi in July. Last week it was declared a terrorist group. In the past six months, more than 1,000 pro-Morsi protesters have been killed in clashes with security forces, and thousands of Brotherhood supporters have been arrested, including the majority of its leadership. A court will hear a case to disband the Brotherhood's political wing, the Freedom and Justice Party (FJP), on 15 February. 'Arbitrary' The four journ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Justin Bieber all over Selena Gomez at party

Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez were all over each other at a friend's birthday party. The 'Baby' hitmaker rented out the Lucky Strike bowling alley in Los Angeles on Sunday night for their pal Ryan Butler's intimate celebration, and couldn't keep his hands off the 'Come & Get It' singer at the party. A source told E! News: ''Justin rented out Lucky Strike's Luxe room for the celebration. Additionally, he was seen kissing and flirting with his on-and-off again girlfriend, Selena Gomez.'' The insider added: ''The group, of about 12 people in all, enjoyed some of Lucky Strike's Esteban's Nacho's Grande, Cheeseburgers and wings. Specifically, Justin was seen eating the Mac & Cheese bites.'' Ryan's girlfriend posted a photograph of Selena, 22, gazing at Justin, 20, on Instagram from the party. The Canadian star confirmed during a deposition last week that he has reunited with his on-again, off...
Post a Comment
Read more