UEFA Champions League 2014-15 Play-offs

Written by Dr. Sumit Sarkar on August 17, 2014

Club season has not even started in some of the eminent European countries. But the continental mega event, UEFA Champions League is inching towards the last play-off round to decide its final stage participants. Sumit Sarkar warms up through all the matches here with Goalden Times.

Qualifying Rounds

Michel Platini’s vision has ensured that teams qualify for the Champions League play-offs through two different routes – the Champions route and the League route. There are 54 member countries of UEFA. These countries are ranked on basis of performances of clubs from these countries in UEFA competitions. Among these 54 countries, Liechtenstein does not have a domestic league hence club teams from the remaining 53 countries take part in the UEFA Champions’ League.

Champions Route

This year the champions of the bottom 6 rank holder countries played from the first qualifying round of Champions League, which is a two-legged knockout round. Little known teams like FC Santa Coloma from Andorra, FC Levadia Tallinn from Estonia and Havnar Bóltfelag Tórshavn from Faroe Islands had the honours of qualifying to the second round. In the second round, these three teams were joined by other 31 teams – the champions of countries ranked between 17 and 48 in UEFA ranking, except Liechtenstein. The second round was also a two-legged knockout round and 17 teams qualified for the third round. In the third round these 17 teams were joined by champions of Cyprus, Denmark and Austria – associations ranked 14 to 16. The results of the third qualifying round are summarized below:

Celtic would not have qualified but for the bizarre controversy. Legia thrashed them 4-1 at home in Warsaw, and also won 0-2 at Murrayfield. UEFA turned the result and awarded Celtic a 3-0 victory as Legia substituted in a suspended  player Bartosz Bereszynski at the 86^th minute. That made the aggregate score of the tie 4-4 and Celtic advance on away goals rule – none of them actually being “scored” – along with Malmö and Ludogorets.

The play-off draw for the Champions route is given below:

League route                  

The League route is meant for non-champion teams from the top 15 countries in UEFA ranking. The qualifying criteria for clubs from these countries for UEFA Champions’ League 2014-15 are summarized below:

Real Madrid, one of the automatic entrants to group stage from Spain, qualified as defending champions. As a consequence, FC Basel, champions of the 13^th rank country (Switzerland) directly qualified for the group stage. Otherwise, FC Basel would have had to play in the play-offs.

The only qualifying round in the League route was the third qualifying round. The results of the five matches in that qualifying round of this route are summarized below:

The five winners were joined by Athletic Bilbao, Arsenal, Bayer Leverkusen, Napoli and Porto. The play-off draw for the League route looks like this:

Now let us take a sneak peek into each of the play-offs; needless to say, there are quite a few exciting match-ups in prospect.

Qualifying Round Previews

Salzburg vs. Malmö

Red Bull Salzburg defeated Ajax 6-1 over two legs in the round of 32 of Europa league last year, including a 3-0 win at Amsterdam Arena, before falling to Basel in the round of 16. This year, after losing 2-1 away to Qarabağ in Azerbaijan in the third round of Champions League qualifiers, they qualified for the play-offs after winning the return leg 2-0 at home. Swedish champion Malmö overcame the Latvian champion FK Ventspils in the second qualifying round with a 0-1 away win after the goalless first leg, before knocking off Sparta Prague on away goals in the third round.

Players to watch: Spaniard Jonatan Soriano of Salzburg is a prolific scorer, who scored five goals in a league match against SV Grödig earlier this month. For Malmö it is 31-year-old Markus Rosenberg, who scored six goals in last four matches including two goals against Sparta Prague in the return leg of third qualifying round.

Steaua Bucureşti vs. Ludogorets Razgrad  

Steaua reached the play-offs after overcoming Norwegian side Strømsgodset in the second round, and the Kazakh side FK Aktobe in the third round. They didn’t concede any goal against Strømsgodset, but failed to display the same defensive discipline against Aktobe of Kazakhstan. They have to put up a much better showing if they have to improve on last year’s performance where they qualified for the group stage, but ended at the bottom of the group behind Chelsea, Schalke and Basel. Ludogorets progressed after defeating Luxembourg side F91 Dudelange in second round and Partizan Belgrade in third. However, they have drawn their last three qualifier games, after winning 4-0 at home against Dudelange. Two early away goals against Partizan – who qualified as the champion team from Serbia, Red Star Belgrade, was suspended for breaching UEFA Club Licensing and Financial Fair Play Regulations – saw them through in the second leg of third qualifying round.

Being from neighboring countries the teams know each other inside out. Ludogorets’ Romanian defender Cosmin Moti and Portuguese left-back Vitinha played for several years against Steaua in the Romanian Liga 1. The two sides met in a friendly on 2^nd July when Ludogorets won 4-2. However, things might change in a competitive game. Steaua never lost a match against Bulgarian sides.

Players to watch: Steaua’s 26-year-old midfielder Adrian Popa and Ludogorets’ young Dutch forward Virgil Misidjan are the players to watch in this match-up.

Slovan Bratislava vs. BATE

Slovan Bratislava qualified for the play-offs after remaining undefeated in the previous two qualifying rounds. In the second round they defeated Wales side The New Saints 3-0 on aggregate, and in the third round they defeated Moldovan side FC Sheriff Tiraspol 2-1 at home after keeping the away tie goalless at Moldova. FC BATE Borisov from Belarus, on the other hand, scraped through the qualifying rounds by managing just one win at home against Hungarian outfit Debreceni VSC in the third round. Before that BATE went past Albanian side Skënderbeu Korçë on away goals after drawing both matches in the tie. In fact, before defeating Debreceni at home on 5th August, BATE went winless for 11 European games – right after an unbelievable 3-1 win against the mighty Bayern Munich on 2nd October, 2012. BATE, however, have experience of Champions League main stage in 2008-09, 2011-12 and 2012-13.

Players to watch: Vitali Rodionov of BATE has scored 18 European goals, which is the highest for any player playing for any Belarusian club. For Slovan, the players to watch are Karol Mészáros and Juraj Halenár.

Aalborg vs. APOEL FC

Aalborg is back to Champions League after six years and the lowest ranked team alive in the play-offs. As Danish champions, they began their campaign from third qualifying round wherein they defeated Dinamo Zagreb, at Zagreb, 2-0 after losing the home match 0-1. APOEL too entered straight in the third qualifying round as champions of Cyprus and qualified for the play-offs by virtue of a 2-0 home win over HJK Helsinki after drawing the 1^st leg 2-2 in Helsinki.

APOEL qualified for the group stage for the first time in 2009-10. They topped their group consisting of Zenit, Porto and Shakhtar en route to the round of 16 where they knocked out Olympique Lyonnais before falling to the mighty Real Madrid in 2011-12. That remains the only incidence for a Cypriot club to reach that far in the tournament till date. Aalborg also qualified for the group stage twice, of which the last was in 2008-09.

Players to watch: APOEL’s 34-year-old Brazilian Gustavo Manduca is still their most prolific striker. Aalborg will pin their hopes on 23-yearold Nicklas Helenius for goals.

Maribor vs. Celtic 

This is the third play-off in as many years for Slovenian club NK Maribor. To qualify for the play-offs, this year they defeated Bosnian side HSK Zrinjski Mostar in the second round and Maccabi Tel Aviv in the third round. However, they failed to win any of their away matches so far this season in Europe. In fact, they did not win any of their last six away continental matches spanning more than couple of years. Celtic is just lucky to be in the play-offs. They were thrashed handsomely by Legia Warsaw, both at away and home, in the third qualifying round. They would have not been in the play-offs but for the unprofessional blunder of Legia where they fielded a player illegally, that too for the last few minutes of their second leg match. Before that, however, Celtic had comfortably beaten KR Reykjavik from Iceland 5-0 on aggregate in the second round.

In 2012-13 Celtic qualified for the round of 16, finishing their group only behind Barcelona. They even defeated Barcelona at home at the group stage that year. But last year they disappointed with only one win over Ajax at home. They are seasoned campaigners, but Celtic might be a bit rusty as their domestic campaign just about started. They would also need to fill the void created by the release of veteran Georgios Samaras. Maribor, on the other hand, qualified for the main stage only once, and that was way back in 1999-2000.

Players to watch: For Maribor, Slovenian youngster Damjan Bohar and his Brazilian captain Marcos Tavares are the players to watch.  Celtic will rely on Anthony Stokes.

København vs. Leverkusen 

Runners-up of Denmark, København began their campaign from the third qualifying round in the League route, wherein they defeated Ukrainian side Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk 2-0 at home after keeping the 1^st leg goalless in Kiev. As the fourth placed team from Bundesliga, Leverkusen have directly qualified for the play-offs.

Roger Schmidt cannot take it lightly against København even though they are yet to register a win against any German side. København was drawn in the difficult group last year alongside Real Madrid, Juventus and Galatasaray. To their credit, at home they defeated Galatasaray and drawn 1-1 against Juventus, but had to settle for the wooden spoon. Leverkusen qualified for the round of 16 last year where they were thrashed 1-6 by Paris Saint Germain on aggregate.

Players to watch: Stefan Kießling is the man for Leverkusen. København will rely on Andreas Cornelius and their new recruit, Belgian midfielder Steve De Ridder.

Standard Liège v Zenit Saint Petersburg

As runners-up from Belgium and Russia, these two teams began their campaign from the third qualifying round in the League route. Standard Liège defeated Panathinaikos 1-2 away in Greece after a goalless draw at home in the 1^st leg. Zenit overcame AEL of Cyprus 3-0 at home after losing the 1^st leg 1-0.

Last year Zenit qualified to the round of 16 making full use of the freezing home conditions – all three visitors had to share the spoils in Russia. They then went down to Borussia Dortmund even after winning the away leg 2-1. Standard Liège have so far qualified for the group stages only once, in 2009-10.

These two clubs met in the first round of UEFA Cup in 2007-08 when Zenit won 3-0 at home and the match in Belgium was drawn 1-1. With Andres Villas-Boas in charge, and players like Ezequiel Garay, Andrey Arshavin, Javi Garcia, Axel Witsel and Hulk in their rank, Zenit is capable of going beyond the Group stage. Standard, on the other hand, lost their two most prolific scorers – in fact only two players scoring more than 10 goals last season – Michy Batshuayi and Imoh Ezekiel to Olympique Marseille and Al Arabi, respectively, in the transfer window. They have yet to lose at home to a Russian side; however, they have yet to avoid defeat – or indeed score a goal – in Russia.

Players to watch: For Zenit, it is their Venezuelan striker Jose Rondon and for Standard Liège, 25 yearl old midfielder Mujangi Bia.

LOSC Lille vs. FC Porto

As the third placed team from France Lille had to begin their campaign from the third qualifying round in the league route, wherein they overcame Swiss side Grasshoppers Club Zurich 3-1 on aggregate. They won the away match in Zurich but settled for a 1-1 draw at home in the return leg. As the third placed team from Portugal, Porto directly qualified for the play-offs.

Lille last qualified for the group stage in 2012-13, but finished at the bottom of the table with five loses and a consolation win against BATE Borisov. FC Porto, the Champion of 2003-04 is the only former Champion in this year’s play-offs.  They have so far qualified for the group stage of Champions League each year in this millennium except in 2010-11.

But Porto will not be content with just a qualification to the group stage. Their new signings –  Cristian Tello (on loan from Barcelona), Yacine Brahimi, Bruno Martins Indi, Adrian Lopez and Casemiro (on loan from Real Madrid), have made them a formidable force in Europe and a deep run in the tournament is not out of question.

Players to watch: All the new recruits of Porto have points to prove. But the Colombian pair of seasoned Javi Martinez and young midfielder Juan Quintero are the players to watch. Lille will depend on the scoring ability of Solomon Kalou and Divock Origi. Their goalkeeper Vincent Enyeama also has to live up to increased expectations following the World Cup.

Beşiktaş vs. Arsenal

Since Turkish champions Fenerbahçe is suspended from all UEFA competitions till 2015 due to Turkish sports corruption scandal, runners-up Galatasaray directly qualified for the main stage and third placed Beşiktaş is playing the play-off after overcoming Feyenoord in the third qualifying round. Beşiktaş defeated Feyenoord 1-2 at Rotterdam and 3-1 at home. Arsenal directly qualified to the play-offs as the fourth placed team from England.

Arsenal was in the same pot with Porto, Zenit, Leverkusen and Napoli for this round of draw. They might be happy to avoid Athletic Bilbao, but traveling to Turkey is also not to the liking of Arsene Wenger. Arsenal, nevertheless, is familiar with Turkish opponents. Last year they defeated Fenerbahçe in the play-offs. The last time Arsenal missed the group stages of Champions League was way back in 1997-1998. Beşiktaş on the other hand last reached the main stage five years ago, but they are almost invincible at home. Since 1999-2000 they have won each of their 12 European matches at home during the qualifying stages, conceding just three goals while scoring 27. However, Arsenal will definitely draw impetus from their Community Shield win over Manchester City.

Players to watch: Arsenal fans should be happy with the performance of Aaron Ramsey, Olivier Giroud and Santi Cazorla in the Community Shield, but they will surely be looking forward to test the combination of Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil in Europe. Beşiktaş will rely on their new signing Demba Ba who has already announced his arrival with hat-trick on debut in the third qualifying round match.

Napoli vs. Athletic Bilbao

This is possibly the biggest match in the play-offs. Napoli and Bilbao both qualified straight to the play-offs as the third placed team from Italy and the fourth placed team from Spain respectively. Athletic Bilbao is back in Champions League football after ages. Their only group stage qualification came back in 1998-99. Napoli debuted in the group stage in 2011-12 and played again last year, but unfortunately could not make it to the round of 16 despite being tied on points with Dortmund and Arsenal. Napoli went down on goal difference, even after having a whopping 12 points in the kitty – only seven qualified teams did have more points to show for..

Rafa Benitez, the willy Spaniard who coached the neighbours Osasuna in 1996-97, Bilbao is no stranger. Having players with La Liga experience like Gonzalo Higuain, Raul Albiol, Michu, Jose Callejon and Henrique in their ranks, Napoli should be well prepared for the Basque Country. Bilbao lost Andre Herrera in the transfer window, who was undoubtedly their best player since last couple of years. Nevertheless, if they score an away goal in Napoli, the return leg in San Mames will become extremely difficult for Rafa’s boys.

Players to watch: With players like Aritz Aduriz, Markel Susaeta and Iker Muniain in their ranks, Bilbao have enough potency. Napoli of course boasts of their attack with Higuain, Callejon and Marek Hamsik in charge. A mouthwatering clash is on the cards.

Whatever happens, teams entering the main stage through this final qualifying round would surely make it more exciting. While we expect some usual suspects, don’t be surprised if there are couple of upsets over the two legs of ties. These are the teams which make UEFA Champions League a truly continental competition, a truly inclusive one. May the best teams win. We shall be back again during the group stages. Till then, follow football, follow us.

About Dr. Sumit Sarkar

Dr. Sumit Sarkar is a football lover and an ardent follower of La Liga. An economist by profession, Sumit has a keen interest in economics of football clubs and leagues. You may follow him on Twitter @SumitS_

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