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Saturday August 8, 2009

Russian adventure for Fulham in Europa League

PARIS: The draw for the new Europa League yesterday handed English Premiership side and Euro-virgins Fulham an intriguing trip to Russian side Amkar Perm.

Former European champions Aston Villa have home and away dates with Rapid Vienna while Everton, former winners of the defunct Cup Winners Cup, will kick off at home to Czech side Sigma Olomouc.

The Europa League, successor to the UEFA Cup, brings together a somewhat motley collection of clubs - some boasting a fine continental pedigree whereas others exist on the far-flung fringes of the UEFA family.

That is very much the case of Perm, situated some 1,200 km west of Moscow on the River Kama, the main tributary of the Volga.

The Russians only turned professional in 1995 after fertiliser factory workers assembled a team - Amkar being an amalgam of “ammoniac” and “carbamide“, the products at the factory.

Last season the club placed fourth in the Russian league.

Now the squad will be able to pop into the swanky Harrods department store, owned by Fulham chairman Mohamed Al Fayed, on the way to their first leg tie at Craven Cottage.

Steve McClaren

Fulham, meanwhile, will want to make sure they go into the hat for the group stages proper after being drawn in a pre-group 2 which contains such experienced sides as Spain’s former Champions League semi-finalists Villarreal.

The other groups feature a raft of sides who have known bigger things but who now must sample the budget fare of a tournament which has rather less lustre than the lucrative Champions League.

They include Dutch former European Cup winners PSV Eindhoven, who open their campaign against Israeli side Bnei Tehuda. PSV’s group also contains Italian stalwarts Lazio, who go up against Sweden’s Elfsborg.

Four-time European champions Ajax of Holland meet Slovak side Slovan Bratislava while other teams in their group include Hertha Berlin, who travel to Denmark’s Brondby, and last season’s UEFA Cup winners Shakhtar Donetsk of Ukraine.

Dutch outfit FC Twente, coached by former England boss Steve McClaren (pic), denied a place in the Champions League on away goals by Sporting Lisbon in midweek, take on Azeri unknowns Qarabag.

Former European champions Steaua Bucharest will welcome Irish minnows St Patrick’s Athletic in a David versus Goliath battle while former Rusian UEFA Cup winners Zenit St Petersburg host CD Nacional of Portugal.

In the final pre-group 8, two former European heavyweights will hope to make it through to the group stage.

Benfica, twice European Cup winners in their early 1960s heydey, meet Ukraine’s Vorskla Poltava while two-time losing finalists Valencia travel to Norway’s Stabaek for their Aug 20 first leg.

The second legs are played Aug 27 - save for Shakhtar Donetsk, who play theirs two days earlier as they take on Barcelona on the 28th for the Super Cup in Monaco. — AFP

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