Rangers To Be In Pot 3 For CL Draw

[Stu1993 101]

by Lindsay Herron

THE MAJOR ramification of retaining the SPL title means that Rangers will go into the group phase of the Champions League for the 10th time since the competition was founded 18 years ago.

The fact that Inter Milan and Bayern Munich do battle on Saturday night for the 2009/10 crown means that Rangers have avoided potentially treacherous qualifying rounds.

They have squeezed in as one of the 22 directly qualified teams as both of these heavyweights have already secured their places by virtue of winning the Italian and German leagues respectively.

And we can say with some certainty that Rangers will be in the third pot of seeds when the draw is made on Thursday, August 26.

Looking at the list of sides they could face, it is clearly going to be a mouth-watering prospect for the supporters who, of course, relish the European nights at Ibrox.

At the same time they will be sincerely hoping for a better return than the two points secured in the last campaign.

Lying in wait in pot one are Spanish champions Barcelona, England's top three Chelsea, Manchester United and Arsenal, the two Milan clubs, Bayern Munich and Sevilla, assuming they get through in the fourth qualifying round.

Pot two is just as exciting with some of the great names in European football set to become Rangers' opponents.

In there we have Lyon, Real Madrid, Roma, Shakhtar Donetsk, Benfica, Valencia and Marseille with Werder Bremen scheduled to join them if they can come through one qualifying round.

The beauty of Rangers' ranking means they are going to avoid teams like Zenit St Petersburg, Tottenham, Ajax, Schalke 04, Basel and Anderlecht who will appear in pot three if they can come through qualifying as well as Panathinaikos who are already there.

However, there is little doubt that there are some potentially very dangerous opponents lurking in pot four with Russian outfits Spartak Moscow and Rubin Kazan, new Dutch champions Twente Enschede, Romanian champions Cluj and surprise Turkish title winners Bursapor, featuring former Rangers youth player Isa Bagci.

Copenhagen, Hapoel Tel Aviv and Sparta Prague are scheduled to join them as a result of their seeding but this certainly not cast in stone.

Revitalised Sampdoria and Auxerre might have something to say about that along with Dinamo Kiev and Fenerbahce.

Of course, Celtic also have ambitions of reaching the group phase but as everyone knows the qualifying process for non-champions is so difficult.

Last season they beat Moscow Dynamo only to lose heavily to Arsenal and parachuted into the Europa League.

This season they will be unseeded in the third qualifying round and are scheduled to meet Zenit, Ajax, Fenerbahce, Kiev and possibly Sporting Braga of Portugal or the dreaded Unirea Urziceni!

If Celtic lose at this stage they would go into the 4th qualifying round of the Europa League and failure there would mean elimination completely.

This scenario would not doubt bring a smirk to the faces of many Rangers fans and it would hurt Celtic financially which, by definition, might be beneficial to Rangers.

However, Scottish football's ranking in Europe is slipping and the 2010/11 season looks like being the last one for some time that the champions earn direct entry to the Champions League group phase.

In 2011/12 the SPL champions could play as many as THREE qualifiers in their attempt to reach the group phase and the runners-up will face two qualifiers to get into the Europa League

[bombaybadboy08 15,660]

by Lindsay Herron

THE MAJOR ramification of retaining the SPL title means that Rangers will go into the group phase of the Champions League for the 10th time since the competition was founded 18 years ago.

The fact that Inter Milan and Bayern Munich do battle on Saturday night for the 2009/10 crown means that Rangers have avoided potentially treacherous qualifying rounds.

They have squeezed in as one of the 22 directly qualified teams as both of these heavyweights have already secured their places by virtue of winning the Italian and German leagues respectively.

And we can say with some certainty that Rangers will be in the third pot of seeds when the draw is made on Thursday, August 26.

Looking at the list of sides they could face, it is clearly going to be a mouth-watering prospect for the supporters who, of course, relish the European nights at Ibrox.

At the same time they will be sincerely hoping for a better return than the two points secured in the last campaign.

Lying in wait in pot one are Spanish champions Barcelona, England's top three Chelsea, Manchester United and Arsenal, the two Milan clubs, Bayern Munich and Sevilla, assuming they get through in the fourth qualifying round.

Pot two is just as exciting with some of the great names in European football set to become Rangers' opponents.

In there we have Lyon, Real Madrid, Roma, Shakhtar Donetsk, Benfica, Valencia and Marseille with Werder Bremen scheduled to join them if they can come through one qualifying round.

The beauty of Rangers' ranking means they are going to avoid teams like Zenit St Petersburg, Tottenham, Ajax, Schalke 04, Basel and Anderlecht who will appear in pot three if they can come through qualifying as well as Panathinaikos who are already there.

However, there is little doubt that there are some potentially very dangerous opponents lurking in pot four with Russian outfits Spartak Moscow and Rubin Kazan, new Dutch champions Twente Enschede, Romanian champions Cluj and surprise Turkish title winners Bursapor, featuring former Rangers youth player Isa Bagci.

Copenhagen, Hapoel Tel Aviv and Sparta Prague are scheduled to join them as a result of their seeding but this certainly not cast in stone.

Revitalised Sampdoria and Auxerre might have something to say about that along with Dinamo Kiev and Fenerbahce.

Of course, Celtic also have ambitions of reaching the group phase but as everyone knows the qualifying process for non-champions is so difficult.

Last season they beat Moscow Dynamo only to lose heavily to Arsenal and parachuted into the Europa League.

This season they will be unseeded in the third qualifying round and are scheduled to meet Zenit, Ajax, Fenerbahce, Kiev and possibly Sporting Braga of Portugal or the dreaded Unirea Urziceni!

If Celtic lose at this stage they would go into the 4th qualifying round of the Europa League and failure there would mean elimination completely.

This scenario would not doubt bring a smirk to the faces of many Rangers fans and it would hurt Celtic financially which, by definition, might be beneficial to Rangers.

However, Scottish football's ranking in Europe is slipping and the 2010/11 season looks like being the last one for some time that the champions earn direct entry to the Champions League group phase.

In 2011/12 the SPL champions could play as many as THREE qualifiers in their attempt to reach the group phase and the runners-up will face two qualifiers to get into the Europa League

x 100.

Knew that anyway but depressing to see it in black and white.

[*Manticore* 1,893]

And we can say with some certainty that Rangers will be in the third pot of seeds when the draw is made on Thursday, August 26.

I'm not sure that 'we' can.

We're currently projected to be 4th in Pot 3, a lot could change that.

[Poetry_In_Blue 1,043]

No surprise there, at least we will be in the draw

[bluenose andy 1]

No surprise there, at least we will be in the draw

[GeneralCartmanLee 313]

What a pointless article......We are currently in pot 3 but there are three rounds of qualifiers to go so plenty can change.

In 2011/12 the SPL champions could play as many as THREE qualifiers in their attempt to reach the group phase and the runners-up will face two qualifiers to get into the Europa League

I also think this is incorrect, i will check

[Right_To_Censor 1,951]

thats what bugs me, if your champions of your prespective league you shouldn't have to qualify, the whole fucking system co eficient shite is just wrong, 4 from england, spain, germany, italy, holland bla bla bla, they really should just rename champions league to something else.

[ManchestGer 347]

We got excited about this last year but as proved last year whoever we get will be a tough encounter.

[GeneralCartmanLee 313]

it's likely to be two rounds of games as we are replacing the beligian team who have two games this season. Also we would be seeded and would be in the champions draw which is the far easier draw.

here is this years as an example

http://www.xs4all.nl/~kassiesa/bert/uefa/seedcl2010.html

[gandhisflip 5]

What a pointless article......We are currently in pot 3 but there are three rounds of qualifiers to go so plenty can change.

In 2011/12 the SPL champions could play as many as THREE qualifiers in their attempt to reach the group phase and the runners-up will face two qualifiers to get into the Europa League

I also think this is incorrect, i will check

2 qualifiers for the Champs next season - and it would be a much "easier" route playing the likes of Polish and Cypriot teams in the 3rd qual and the likes of Rosenberg/Partisan Belgrade in the final qualy.

[BLUEDIGNITY 33,647]

Bring on Spaniards by the score . . .

[Stu1993 101]

I hope we get the hardest draw possible. The 'underdog' tag suits us nicely, and drawing 'easy' team doesn't do us any favours whatsoever.

Agree and then hopefully we can sell out ibrox aswell.

[*Manticore* 1,893]

I hope we get the hardest draw possible. The 'underdog' tag suits us nicely, and drawing 'easy' team doesn't do us any favours whatsoever.

You've got a point there.

I'm sure I wasn't alone in seeing Unirea and thinking 'Well that's at least 4 points in the bag'.

[Mikhailichenko 90]

it's likely to be two rounds of games as we are replacing the beligian team who have two games this season. Also we would be seeded and would be in the champions draw which is the far easier draw.

here is this years as an example

http://www.xs4all.nl/~kassiesa/bert/uefa/seedcl2010.html

Here's the best bit from that site;

3rd Qualifying Round for Non-Champions (10 teams)

Seeded teams coef. Unseeded teams coef.

------------------------ --- ---------------- ------------------------ --- ----------------

Zenit St. Petersburg Rus 61.258 Celtic Sco 38.158

Ajax Ned 55.309 Unirea Urziceni Rom 18.898

Fenerbahçe Tur 54.890 PAOK Thessaloniki Gre 11.479

Dinamo Kiev Ukr 42.910 Young Boys Sui 7.675

Sporting Braga Por 39.659 AA Gent Bel 6.580

[*Manticore* 1,893]

I hope we get the hardest draw possible. The 'underdog' tag suits us nicely, and drawing 'easy' team doesn't do us any favours whatsoever.

Agree and then hopefully we can sell out ibrox aswell.

It's vital that we sell out Ibrox for this, either by drawing Real, Barca, Manure or Chelsea; or by lowering prices.

The place will have to be rocking for us to have a chance.

[GeneralCartmanLee 313]

it's likely to be two rounds of games as we are replacing the beligian team who have two games this season. Also we would be seeded and would be in the champions draw which is the far easier draw.

here is this years as an example

http://www.xs4all.nl/~kassiesa/bert/uefa/seedcl2010.html

Here's the best bit from that site;

3rd Qualifying Round for Non-Champions (10 teams)

Seeded teams coef. Unseeded teams coef.

------------------------ --- ---------------- ------------------------ --- ----------------

Zenit St. Petersburg Rus 61.258 Celtic Sco 38.158

Ajax Ned 55.309 Unirea Urziceni Rom 18.898

Fenerbahçe Tur 54.890 PAOK Thessaloniki Gre 11.479

Dinamo Kiev Ukr 42.910 Young Boys Sui 7.675

Sporting Braga Por 39.659 AA Gent Bel 6.580

Yeah posted a thread about this a few weeks ago in general and the results worked out over the weekend. They will do very well to get by that round in what will betheir new managers first euroepan game and youy have to expect one of the new squads first competitive games.

[MisterC 12,270]

No big surprise really. Would like us to get either Chelsea or Arsenal and either Benfica or Marseille from pot 2. Lets hope the club are sensible with ticket prices, £40 was way too much last season.

[NorthernLights 2,526]

Chelsea please.

[papaguy51 912]

I hope we get the hardest draw possible. The 'underdog' tag suits us nicely, and drawing 'easy' team doesn't do us any favours whatsoever.

You've got a point there.

I'm sure I wasn't alone in seeing Unirea and thinking 'Well that's at least 4 points in the bag'.

[boss 1,941]

Here is the definitive position:

1. We WILL be in the 3rd pot unless ALL 4 of Seville, Werder Bremen, Zenit and Spurs get knocked out in the 4th (or in Zenit's case, the 3rd or 4th) qualifying round. So it is fair for Lindsay Herron to say: "we can say with some certainty that Rangers will be in the third pot".

2. In theory the 2010/11 Champions could have 3 qualifying rounds to play in 2011/12. BUT it is very, very likely that the 2010/11 winners will qualify automatically through their league position for 2011/12 (they usually do), which would mean the Scottish Champions would only have 2 qualifying rounds to play. FURTHERMORE those qualifying rounds will be against the Champions from countries ranked below Scotland. As Rangers will be seeded, the HARDEST qualifying match we could get would be against the Champions of countries like Israel, Czech, Austria, Cyprus, Bulgaria etc. So absolutely winnable matches.

[BLUEDIGNITY 33,647]

I'll take Chelsea, Real Madrid for the glamour and Copenhagen for a bit of light relief !

[dummiesoot 16,006]

Seeded teams coef. Unseeded teams coef.

------------------------ --- ---------------- ------------------------ --- ----------------

Zenit St. Petersburg Rus 61.258 Celtic Sco 38.158

Ajax Ned 55.309 Unirea Urziceni Rom 18.898

Fenerbahçe Tur 54.890 PAOK Thessaloniki Gre 11.479

Dinamo Kiev Ukr 42.910 Young Boys Sui 7.675

Sporting Braga Por 39.659 AA Gent Bel 6.580

Pity they can't play each other, Sellik getting pumped by young boys for a change!

[Poetry_In_Blue 1,043]

Seeded teams coef. Unseeded teams coef.

------------------------ --- ---------------- ------------------------ --- ----------------

Zenit St. Petersburg Rus 61.258 Celtic Sco 38.158

Ajax Ned 55.309 Unirea Urziceni Rom 18.898

Fenerbahçe Tur 54.890 PAOK Thessaloniki Gre 11.479

Dinamo Kiev Ukr 42.910 Young Boys Sui 7.675

Sporting Braga Por 39.659 AA Gent Bel 6.580

Pity they can't play each other, Sellik getting pumped by young boys for a change!

Oh the irony, could just see some of the banners now!

[SammyEnglish 48]

Real Madrid please

[simon 1,743]

Seeded teams coef. Unseeded teams coef.

------------------------ --- ---------------- ------------------------ --- ----------------

Zenit St. Petersburg Rus 61.258 Celtic Sco 38.158

Ajax Ned 55.309 Unirea Urziceni Rom 18.898

Fenerbahçe Tur 54.890 PAOK Thessaloniki Gre 11.479

Dinamo Kiev Ukr 42.910 Young Boys Sui 7.675

Sporting Braga Por 39.659 AA Gent Bel 6.580

Pity they can't play each other, Sellik getting pumped by young boys for a change!

:lol: