Latest news with #Qarabag
The Irish Sun
7 hours ago
- Sport
- The Irish Sun
Shelbourne face potential clash with European regulars Qarabag in Champions League second round
SHELBOURNE will face a daunting visit to Azeri champions Qarabag in the Champions League if they beat Linfield. Advertisement 2 Shelbourne could face Qarabag if they get past Linfield in the Champions League 2 Shelbourne manager Damien Duff and his side get their Euro campaign underway in July The first leg would be at home on July 22 or 23, with the away leg the following week. The Baku-based outfit are one of the toughest potential opponents are are group stage regulars having reached that stage of one of Last season, they reached the Europa League groups by virtue of qualifying for the And they previous experience against Irish opposition beating Dundalk 4-1 on aggregate in the Champions League in 2019. Advertisement read more on football Manager Gurban Gurbanov has been in charge for 18 years and his squad also provides the backbone of the Azerbaijan national team - five that featured against Hungary last week were Qarabag players. Shelbourne know that victory over Linfield will also guarantee them the 'champions path' which means they are guaranteed three more ties even if they lose. That route guarantees €1.75 million in prize money and it can rise to €3.87 million if they win one tie, as it guarantees Conference League group stages at least. But defeat to Linfield would see Shelbourne parachuted into the Conference League second round and needing to win three consecutive ties to make the group stages. Advertisement Most read in Football Live Blog If the Reds are in the Conference League, they will have a tie with Lithuanians Zalgiris or Maltese outfit Hamrun Spartans with the first leg due to be away on July 24 and home on July 31. But the pick of the Conference League ties for Irish clubs is the potential meeting between Shamrock Rovers and Belfast outfit Cliftonville. Harry Kane enjoys makeshift ice bath in WHEELIE BIN after 10-0 Bayern Munich rout in Club World Cup opener The Hoops enter the competition at the second round phase by virtue of their high ranking which saw them given a first round bye following Drogheda United's expulsion. But they will now watch the first round closely as they face the winners of Cliftonville or Gibraltar outfit St Joesph's - who Shelbourne beat last year. Advertisement St Patrick's Athletic also learnt they will face Kalju of Estonia or Partizani of Albania if they beat Hegelmann of Lithuania in the first round of the Conference League with the first leg at home. But the three Dublin clubs could potentially see ties and dates move as UEFA do not allow clubs to play on the same day in the same city. That is potentially a problem for Rovers and Shels, but also because of a potential clash between Cliftonville and Linfield as well.
Belfast Telegraph
10 hours ago
- Sport
- Belfast Telegraph
Cliftonville on course for Conference League clash with Dublin giants while Dungannon face trip to Liechtenstein
Adam McKendry and Keith Bailie The winners of Linfield and Shelbourne will face Azerbaijan champions Qarabag in the second qualifying round of the Champions League. The first round will be staged at the home of the winners of the All-Ireland clash on July 22/23, with the second leg in Baku the following week. The Blues are no strangers to Qarabag. In 2019, the Azerbaijan side knocked Linfield out of the Play-Off round of the Europa League on away goals after a memorable two-legged encounter that saw a Shayne Lavery-inspired Linfield record a famous win at Windsor Park. Qarabag, who reached the league phase of the Europa League last term, will be favourites to progress to the third round, regardless of who wins the Irish derby. The first leg of that clash will be played at Tolka Park in Dublin on July 8/9 with the second leg in Belfast on July 15/16. If, however, Linfield lose to Shelbourne they will drop into the second round of the Conference League. There they will play either Zalagris of Lithuania or Hamrun Spartans of Malta, with the second leg in Belfast. Linfield against Shelbourne may not be the only all-Ireland clash of the summer. If Cliftonville defeat St Joseph's in the first round of the Conference League, they will face Shamrock Rovers in the second round, with the first leg at Solitude. Irish Cup winners Dungannon Swifts went straight into the second round, where they will face Liechtenstein side FC Vaduz, with the first leg at home. Vaduz play in the second tier of Swiss football but qualified for Europe by winning the Liechtenstein national cup. Should Larne overcome Latvian side Auda in the first round, they will play either Sheriff Tiraspol of Moldova or FC Prishtina of Kosovo in the second round. The Invermen will have home advantage in the second leg. The first leg of the Conference League second round games will be played on Thursday 24 July with the second leg on Thursday 31 July. 39 minutes ago Dungannon Swifts will face FC Vaduz of Lichtenstein. The home leg will be the second game for Dungannon. Vaduz play in the second tier of the Swiss league. They qualified by winning the Lichtenstein national cup. 40 minutes ago The winners of FC Sheriff Tiraspol and FC Prishtina will play the winners of Larne versus Auda. Larne, should they progress, will have home advantage in the first leg. 43 minutes ago Now it's time for the main pathway. The winner of Joseph's and Cliftonville will feature in this group. They could potentially draw Shamrock Rovers or Dundee United. 50 minutes ago The losers of Shelbourne and Linfield will face Zalagris of Lithuania or Hamrun Spartans of Malta in the second qualifying round of the Conference League. The second leg will be staged at Windsor Park, should Linfield lost to Shels. 52 minutes ago Up first, it's the champions path. The loser of the Champions League tie between Linfield and Shelbourne will drop into this round. 54 minutes ago The first leg of these ties will be played on Thursday July 24 with the second leg on Thursday July 31. Today 11:57 AM The draw for the second qualifying round of the Conference League will get underway shortly. Dungannon Swifts will learn their opponents, as will Cliftonville and Larne should they progress through the first round. Linfield will also feature in this draw. They will drop into the Conference League if they lose their first round Championship League clash with Shelbourne. Today 11:15 AM Some fixture news. Cliftonville's first round, first leg Conference League game with St Joseph's will be played at Europa Point Stadium on Tuesday, July 8 - two days earlier than expected. The second leg will take place at Solitude on Thursday, July 17. Today 10:21 AM Our liveblog will return at 1pm when Irish Cup winners Dungannon Swifts will learn their opponents in the second qualifying round of the Conference League. Cliftonville and Larne will also learn their second round opponents, should they successfully navigate the first qualifying round. Today 10:20 AM Dates for Qarabag clash Just to recap, the winners of Linfield versus Shelbourne will play Qarabag of Azerbaijan in the second qualifying round of the Champions League. The first leg will be staged at either Windsor Park or Tolka Park on July 22/23 with the second leg in Azerbaijan on July 29/30 Today 10:17 AM Rangers will pay Panathinaikos in the same round, with the first leg at Ibrox. Today 10:15 AM Qarabag await the winners of Irish derby The winners of Linfield versus Shelbourne will play Qarabag of Azerbaijan in the second qualifying round of the Champions League! The first leg will be staged in either Belfast or Dublin, with the winners of the all-Ireland tie away in the second leg. Today 10:13 AM The winners of Linfield and Shelbourne are unseeded for this round Today 10:12 AM Here we go, it's time for Group 3 - the one that features Linfield and Shelbourne Today 10:09 AM We're on to regional group two. Linfield and Shelbourne are also not in this group. Stay with us! Today 10:08 AM There draw is underway, but Uefa are currently running through a different regional group. Today 10:03 AM The draw is about to begin. The first leg of these ties will be staged on July 22 or 23, with the second leg on July 29 and 30 Today 09:59 AM Champions League draw Hello and welcome to the draw for the second qualifying round of the Champions League, where we will find out who the winners of Linfield and Shelbourne will face in the next round. The Irish pair's potential opponents include Slovan Bratislavia, Qarabag, Steaua Bucharest or Inter Club d'Escaldes, Olimpija Ljubljana and Kairat Almaty
Belfast Telegraph
11 hours ago
- Sport
- Belfast Telegraph
Irish Cup winners Dungannon Swifts to learn Conference League opponents
Live | The winners of Linfield and Shelbourne will face Azerbaijan champions Qarabag in the second qualifying round of the Champions League. The first round will be staged at the home of the winners of the All-Ireland clash on July 22/23, with the second leg in Baku the following week. The Blues are no strangers to Qarabag. In 2019, the Azerbaijan side knocked Linfield out of the Play-Off round of the Europa League on away goals after a thrilling two-legged encounter. Qarabag, who reached the league phase of the Europa League last term, will be favourites to progress to the third round, regardless of who wins the Irish derby. The second qualifying round draw for the Conference League will be made at 1pm. Follow along on our LIVE blog below! 4 minutes ago The draw for the second qualifying round of the Conference League will get underway shortly. Dungannon Swifts will learn their opponents, as will Cliftonville and Larne should they progress through the first round. Linfield will also feature in this draw. They will drop into the Conference League if they lose their first round Championship League clash with Shelbourne. 47 minutes ago Some fixture news. Cliftonville's first round, first leg Conference League game with St Joseph's will be played at Europa Point Stadium on Tuesday, July 8 - two days earlier than expected. The second leg will take place at Solitude on Thursday, July 17. Today 10:21 AM Our liveblog will return at 1pm when Irish Cup winners Dungannon Swifts will learn their opponents in the second qualifying round of the Conference League. Cliftonville and Larne will also learn their second round opponents, should they successfully navigate the first qualifying round. Today 10:20 AM Dates for Qarabag clash Just to recap, the winners of Linfield versus Shelbourne will play Qarabag of Azerbaijan in the second qualifying round of the Champions League. The first leg will be staged at either Windsor Park or Tolka Park on July 22/23 with the second leg in Azerbaijan on July 29/30 Today 10:17 AM Rangers will pay Panathinaikos in the same round, with the first leg at Ibrox. Today 10:15 AM Qarabag await the winners of Irish derby The winners of Linfield versus Shelbourne will play Qarabag of Azerbaijan in the second qualifying round of the Champions League! The first leg will be staged in either Belfast or Dublin, with the winners of the all-Ireland tie away in the second leg. Today 10:13 AM The winners of Linfield and Shelbourne are unseeded for this round Today 10:12 AM Here we go, it's time for Group 3 - the one that features Linfield and Shelbourne Today 10:09 AM We're on to regional group two. Linfield and Shelbourne are also not in this group. Stay with us! Today 10:08 AM There draw is underway, but Uefa are currently running through a different regional group. Today 10:03 AM The draw is about to begin. The first leg of these ties will be staged on July 22 or 23, with the second leg on July 29 and 30 Today 09:59 AM Champions League draw Hello and welcome to the draw for the second qualifying round of the Champions League, where we will find out who the winners of Linfield and Shelbourne will face in the next round. The Irish pair's potential opponents include Slovan Bratislavia, Qarabag, Steaua Bucharest or Inter Club d'Escaldes, Olimpija Ljubljana and Kairat Almaty Yesterday 02:13 PM St Patrick's Athletic off to Lithuania The League of Ireland side have been drawn against FC Hegelmann, with the first leg at Richmond Park and the return leg at the Raudondvaris Stadium. Yesterday 02:10 PM BREAKING | Cliftonville will play St Joseph's in the UEFA Conference League first qualifying round The first leg will be in Gibraltar on July 10, with the second leg at Solitude on July 17. Yesterday 02:08 PM BREAKING | Larne will play FK Auda in the UEFA Conference League first qualifying round Larne will be at home in the first leg on July 10, with the second leg in Latvia on July 17. Yesterday 02:06 PM Draw under way This is going to happen fast and furious here, so bear with me please! Yesterday 02:03 PM Here we go! We have the draw coming up here as we are about to discover who Larne and Cliftonville will get in the Conference League! Just the technicals to get through first. Yesterday 01:45 PM When are the matches? The first leg will be on July 10, with the return fixture a week later on July 17. Yesterday 01:30 PM How will this draw work? In short, very differently to the Champions League draw. Each Group is split into eight teams, four seeded and four unseeded. Each team is assigned a number within each Group - for instance, Larne are No.3 in Group 4 and Cliftonville are No.5 in Group 5. Rather than draw each individual group, which would take a lifetime, all eight groups will be drawn at once by having eight individually numbered balls placed in a bowl and drawn two at a time to create each tie, with the team drawn first at home in the first leg. So, for instance, if ball No.3 was drawn first followed by ball No.5, then every team assigned No.3 in each Group would play each team assigned No.5 in the same Group, with team No.3 hosting the first leg. Hopefully that clears things up!
Irish Daily Mirror
12 hours ago
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
Shelbourne discover next Champions League opponent, if they beat Linfield
Shelbourne will face Qarabag of Azerbaijan in the next round of the Champions League, if they can get past Linfield. If they eliminate the Belfast giants, Damien Duff's charges would be at home in the first-leg of the second qualifying round clash with Qarabag. Qarabag are 12-time champions of Azerbaijan and boast strong European pedigree, having made the group or league phase of competitions every year since 2014. Last season, they reached the league phase of the Europa League and sailed through to the round of 16 in the Europa League in 2023. In 2019, Qarabag beat Dundalk 4-1 on aggregate in the Champions League second qualifying round. And that same year, they edged out Linfield on away goals when they dropped into the Europa League playoff round. Either Shelbourne or Linfield will be at home to Qarabag on July 22/23, with the second-leg scheduled for July 29/30. Click this link or scan the QR code to receive the latest League of Ireland news and top stories from the Irish Mirror. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. But Shels won't lose sight of their big date with Linfield on July 8/9 with a tantalising €2 million Champions League shootout three weeks from now. All-Island bragging rights are also on the line when the League of Ireland champions face the NIFL Premiership kingpins at Tolka Park and then Windsor Park. And Reds boss Damien Duff said yesterday: 'It's a brilliant day for everyone at the football club, especially for those who have been through the dark times. 'Players and staff watched the draw together and there's already a great buzz at the prospect of an All-Ireland derby.' Shels are guaranteed a minimum €1 million in European prize money but knocking Linfield out would almost double that. Beating the Blues would guarantee another three European ties for Duff's men, who found timely form on Monday by beating St Pat's. Duff is ready to strengthen his squad in the transfer window as he knows it will be demanding trying to juggle league commitments with European adventures. And particularly so if Shels unlock the door to the 'champions path' by beating David Healy's Belfast giants. But Duff has the experience of last season's two rounds of the Conference League to lean on and said: 'It's just a mentality thing. 'The big teams all around Europe, yeah, they play on a Wednesday and they're up for the game but they're up for it again on the weekend. It's absolutely alien to our lads, I get that, but it's something that I'll try to hammer home. 'It's not 'Oh, Friday, and we have to go again Monday. Oh, I'm tired'. You're not tired. They're all young boys. A lot of them are still living at home with their mammies getting their washing done, their cooking done. 'You can sleep 20 hours a day if you want to. All I want to see you for is 90 minutes.' And Duff added: 'Mentally, attacking two games a week out of three isn't an elite mindset for me. It's attacking every game.' Linfield are out of season but there won't be any issue getting a handle on such familiar and local opponents as Duff prepares to do his homework. The Ireland legend added: 'I've been an analyst 90% of the time for three years, believe it or not, and 5% manager and 5% coach. This year we've got Martin Doyle in, which is a big help and there's an excitement in that. 'Last year, it was St Joseph's (of Gibraltar) and we were trying to claw footage of them. The next game, Zurich, you're looking at footage and thinking, 'are they that good? Are they that bad?' You go and play them away and they're that f***** good, yeah. 'There'll be an element to that this year, but you can sleep when you're dead.' Get the latest sports headlines straight to your inbox by signing up for free email.
Belfast Telegraph
12 hours ago
- Sport
- Belfast Telegraph
The winners of All-Ireland derby face tough challenge in Champions League Second Qualifying Round draw
Live | The winners of Linfield and Shelbourne will face Azerbaijan champions Qarabag in the second qualifying round of the Champions League. The first round will be staged at the home of the winners of the All-Ireland clash on July 22/23, with the second leg in Baku the following week. The Blues are no strangers to Qarabag. In 2019, the Azerbaijan side knocked Linfield out of the Play-Off round of the Europa League on away goals after a thrilling two-legged encounter. Qarabag, who reached the league phase of the Europa League last term, will be favourites to progress to the third round, regardless of who wins the Irish derby. The second qualifying round draw for the Conference League will be made at 1pm. Follow along on our LIVE blog below! 24 minutes ago Our liveblog will return at 1pm when Irish Cup winners Dungannon Swifts will learn their opponents in the second qualifying round of the Conference League. Cliftonville and Larne will also learn their second round opponents, should they successfully navigate the first qualifying round. 25 minutes ago Just to recap, the winners of Linfield versus Shelbourne will play Qarabag of Azerbaijan in the second qualifying round of the Champions League. The first leg will be staged at either Windsor Park or Tolka Park on July 22/23 with the second leg in Azerbaijan on July 29/30 28 minutes ago Rangers will pay Panathinaikos in the same round, with the first leg at Ibrox. 29 minutes ago The winners of Linfield versus Shelbourne will play Qarabag of Azerbaijan in the second qualifying round of the Champions League! The first leg will be staged in either Belfast or Dublin, with the winners of the all-Ireland tie away in the second leg. 32 minutes ago The winners of Linfield and Shelbourne are unseeded for this round 32 minutes ago Here we go, it's time for Group 3 - the one that features Linfield and Shelbourne 35 minutes ago We're on to regional group two. Linfield and Shelbourne are also not in this group. Stay with us! 37 minutes ago There draw is underway, but Uefa are currently running through a different regional group. 41 minutes ago The draw is about to begin. The first leg of these ties will be staged on July 22 or 23, with the second leg on July 29 and 30 46 minutes ago Hello and welcome to the draw for the second qualifying round of the Champions League, where we will find out who the winners of Linfield and Shelbourne will face in the next round. The Irish pair's potential opponents include Slovan Bratislavia, Qarabag, Steaua Bucharest or Inter Club d'Escaldes, Olimpija Ljubljana and Kairat Almaty Yesterday 02:13 PM St Patrick's Athletic off to Lithuania The League of Ireland side have been drawn against FC Hegelmann, with the first leg at Richmond Park and the return leg at the Raudondvaris Stadium. Yesterday 02:10 PM BREAKING | Cliftonville will play St Joseph's in the UEFA Conference League first qualifying round The first leg will be in Gibraltar on July 10, with the second leg at Solitude on July 17. Yesterday 02:08 PM BREAKING | Larne will play FK Auda in the UEFA Conference League first qualifying round Larne will be at home in the first leg on July 10, with the second leg in Latvia on July 17. Yesterday 02:06 PM Draw under way This is going to happen fast and furious here, so bear with me please! Yesterday 02:03 PM Here we go! We have the draw coming up here as we are about to discover who Larne and Cliftonville will get in the Conference League! Just the technicals to get through first. Yesterday 01:45 PM When are the matches? The first leg will be on July 10, with the return fixture a week later on July 17. Yesterday 01:30 PM How will this draw work? In short, very differently to the Champions League draw. Each Group is split into eight teams, four seeded and four unseeded. Each team is assigned a number within each Group - for instance, Larne are No.3 in Group 4 and Cliftonville are No.5 in Group 5. Rather than draw each individual group, which would take a lifetime, all eight groups will be drawn at once by having eight individually numbered balls placed in a bowl and drawn two at a time to create each tie, with the team drawn first at home in the first leg. So, for instance, if ball No.3 was drawn first followed by ball No.5, then every team assigned No.3 in each Group would play each team assigned No.5 in the same Group, with team No.3 hosting the first leg. Hopefully that clears things up! Yesterday 01:15 PM Who can Larne and Cliftonville play? LARNE: Penybont FC (Wales), Valur (Iceland), SJK Seinäjoki (Finland), FK Auda (Latvia) CLIFTONVILLE: Víkingur Reykjavík (Iceland), FK Partizani (Albania), Floriana FC (Malta), St Joseph's FC (Gibraltar) Yesterday 12:20 PM Break time for us! That's the Champions League draw completed with Linfield knowing their opponents - we're going to take a break until Larne and Cliftonville find out their opponents for the Conference League first qualifying round at 3pm. See you then! Yesterday 12:18 PM No luck Linfield and Shelbourne are not drawn out of the hat. So the loser of that tie will go into the second qualifying round for the Europa League.
