• Champions League

Celtic face Cliftonville in Champions League qualifiers

ESPN staff
June 24, 2013
Celtic caused an upset in last season's Champions League when they beat Barcelona at Parkhead © PA Photos
Enlarge

Scottish champions Celtic have been drawn against Northern Ireland counterparts Cliftonville in the second qualifying round for next season's Champions League.

Neil Lennon's side, who reached the knockout phase of the competition last term thanks in part to a famous 2-1 group-stage win over Barcelona - will play the first leg at home on July 16 or 17 before travelling to Belfast for the return leg a week later.

Elsewhere, Welsh champions The New Saints will face Poland's Legia Warsaw, while the 2012 League of Ireland winners Sligo Rovers take on Norwegian side Molde, who are managed by former Manchester United star Ole Gunnar Solskjaer - scorer of the winner in the 1999 final.

The winners of the second-round ties will face another two-legged contest in the third qualifying round. After that, only the play-off round will stand between the successful clubs and a place in the lucrative group stage.

Champions League second qualifying round:

Neftci v Skenderbeu
Steaua Bucuresti v Vardar
Plzen v Zeljeznicar
FC Sheriff v Sutjeska
Birkirkara v Maribor
Sligo Rovers v Molde
IF Elfsborg v FC Daugava
HJK Helsinki v Nomme Kalju
FK Ekranas v FH Hafnarfjordur
The New Saints v Legia Warsaw
Celtic v Cliftonville
Dinamo Zagreb v CS Fola Esch
Gyor v Maccabi Tel-Aviv
BATE v Shakhtyor Karaganda
Shirak or Tre Penne v Partizan Belgrade
Slovan Bratislava v Ludogorets
Dinamo Tbilisi v Lusitanos or EB Streymur

Ties to be played July 16/17 and 23/24

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
Close