| Clubs learn their Euro fate on Monday |
| Sunday 21 June 2009 |
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FOUR Welsh Premier clubs will know their European opponents when the draws for the Champions League and Europa League take place in Switzerland on Monday.
Officials from Rhyl, Llanelli, The New Saints and Bangor City will be at Uefa headquarters in Nyon for the draws, and the champions will be first to learn their fate with the pairings for the first and second qualifying rounds of the Champions League set to start not long after eleven o'clock. The Lilywhites are in the unseeded side of the draw for the second stage and could meet any of 16 different opponents, from the highest-rated FC Kobenhavn with a coefficient of 26.890, to lowest coefficient Ekranas Panavezys of Lithuania. One of their possible foes are Latvians Ventspils, who have beaten both The New Saints (on away goals) and Llanelli in the space of the past two years. An hour and a half later, Llanelli and the Saints will have their wait ended with the draw for the first stage of the new Europa League, which replaces the Uefa Cup. In an open draw, there are 23 possible opponents including long distance trips to Israel (Bnei Yehuda) or closer-to-home visits to Motherwell in Scotland or Sligo Rovers in Ireland. Trips to countries such as Belarus, Bosnia, Georgia and Moldova would also present logistical problems to clubs who have only a few days to plan for a possible away tie on July 2. As Welsh Cup winners, Bangor City go straight into the second qualifying round for which the draw will also be made on Monday. They could face opponents as mighty as Steaua Bucuresti and Galatasaray, but supporters may have to wait until the outcome of the first qualifying round ties on July 9 before making firm travel plans.  |