The Dutch Feyenoord will meet with the Italian Roma at the top of the qualifying round for the quarter-finals of the European League (Europa League) football competition, according to a draw drawn on Monday at the headquarters of the Continental Confederation in Nyon, Switzerland.
The confrontation will be revenge for the Dutch team, which lost the final match of the European Conference League to the Italian capital team with a clean goal the year before last.
The playoff draw included the clubs that finished third in the group stage of the Champions League competition, including Feyenoord, which finished behind Atletico Madrid of Spain and Lazio of Italy, and the clubs that finished runner-up in their groups in the European League competition, where the men of Portuguese coach Jose Mourinho finished behind Slavia Prague of the Czech Republic in Group Seven.
The chances of Italian Milan, which has seven titles in the prestigious continental competition, seem relatively easy to continue its continental journey when it meets French club Rennes.
Milan was eliminated from the Champions League due to the two direct confrontations with Paris Saint-Germain.
Benfica, the Portuguese league champion, will meet French club Toulouse in an easy test as well, while its compatriot and traditional rival Sporting will play against Swiss club Young Boys.
As for Portugal’s third representative in the playoff, Sporting Braga, which finished third in the Champions League behind Real Madrid of Spain and Napoli of Italy, will meet Karabakh of Azerbaijan.
Also highlighted is the summit between Ukrainian Shakhtar Donetsk and French club Marseille, while Lance plays as a guardian
The French league champion, with Freiburg in Germany, and Galatasaray in Turkey with Sparta Prague in the Czech Republic.
The matches will be held next February 15, one-legged, and the 22nd round-robin.
The eight qualifying teams from the playoff will join the eight group champions in the group stage, which are:
- West Ham United (Group One)
- Brighton, England (second)
- Glasgow Rangers (3rd)
- Italian Atalanta (fourth)
- Liverpool (fifth)
- Spain’s Villarreal (sixth)
- Slavia Prague (7th)
- Bayer Leverkusen, Germany (eighth).
The draw for the final eight will be drawn on February 23.
Here is the playoff draw:
- Dutch Feyenoord x Italian Roma
- Milan, Italy x Rennes, France
- France’s Lance x Germany’s Freiburg
- Young Boys of Switzerland x Sporting of Portugal
- Benfica of Portugal x Toulouse of France
- Braga of Portugal x Karabakh of Azerbaijan
- Galatasaray, Turkey x Sparta Prague, Czech Republic
- Shakhtar Donetsk, Ukraine x Marseille, France
