Europa League 2013/14

[Snow]

A thread on the EL this season. This season the winner of the EL will not qualify for the CL.

Three English teams are competing.
Wigan qualified straight for the groups.
Tottenham are seeded for the playoff round and will need to win one tie to qualify to the group stage.
Swansea start in the third qualifying round and thus have to win two ties.

The final will be played at the brand new Juventus Stadium.

 

[Snow]

The first leg of the second qualifying round is almost finished. So far this has been one of the worst round for Finnish teams. Icelandic teams are doing alright but I don't expect them to progress any further.
Dila, a Georgian team, beat AaB (Den) comfortably. Rosenborg lost at home to St. Johnstone. Malmö beat Hibernian at home. Utrecht lost to a team from Luxembourg. Derry lost away to Trabzonspor and Linfield beat Xanthi away.

David James didn't manage to keep a clean sheet against Red Star in Belgrade. He's the assistant to player/manager Hermann Hreiðarsson. So far one Icelandic team of three is holding their own which is good considering how tough a draw they got.

 

[SilentWitness]

Good win for St Johnstone and Scottish football, my cousins Uncle plays for them up front.

 

[Snow]

2nd qualifying round - 1st leg

Spoiler

 

[Cutch]

Hadn't heard that David James is playing in Iceland now. A bit random

 

[Snow]

Hadn't heard that David James is playing in Iceland now. A bit random

Getting his coaching badge. Mates with Hermann. They've done very well with ÍBV. He lives on an island with a 4k population. He really likes it here and doesn't mind an interview. Is well spoken.
Lee Sharpe was here a few years ago and was a fat drunk who fecked off after 4 games.

Sam Hewson, former United reserve team captain is playing here as well.

 

[GlastonSpur]

... This season the winner of the EL will qualify for the CL (if it does not do so via their league).
...

The BBC say this only kicks in for the 2014-15 EL: http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/22640095

 

[Snow]

The BBC say this only kicks in for the 2014-15 EL: http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/22640095

My bad. Read it on wiki and read it wrong. Wiki has it that way as well. What I read was that the winner of the EL get's an entry next season if they don't qualify for CL.

 

[Eriku]

I was at the Hødd - Aktobe Lento match... Hødd are in there for winning the Norwegian cup last year, and they're in the Noggy equivalent to the Championship. First European match ever, which they won 1-0. Was great fun

 

[Snow]

I was at the Hødd - Aktobe Lento match... Hødd are in there for winning the Norwegian cup last year, and they're in the Noggy equivalent to the Championship. First European match ever, which they won 1-0. Was great fun

Same thing happened last season with an Icelandic team. They were runner up in the cup, were relegated. Played in EL and knocked out an Irish team. Then got knocked out themselves in the 2nd round.

So Norwegian cup winners are seeded in the 2nd round then?

 

[Cutch]

Getting his coaching badge. Mates with Hermann. They've done very well with ÍBV. He lives on an island with a 4k population. He really likes it here and doesn't mind an interview. Is well spoken.
Lee Sharpe was here a few years ago and was a fat drunk who fecked off after 4 games.

Sam Hewson, former United reserve team captain is playing here as well.

Interesting stuff. I hadn't been aware of any players from Britain going to Iceland to play.

 

[rcoobc]

Christ I forgot Wigan a Championship side, get to go into the group stage. Not the first time a Championship side got to play in the group stage of course, but will be interesting anyway.

 

[pillory]

Same thing happened last season with an Icelandic team. They were runner up in the cup, were relegated. Played in EL and knocked out an Irish team. Then got knocked out themselves in the 2nd round.

Hødd were actually only GD away from being relegated to the third tier last season when they won the cup. A Norwegian third-tier team in Europe would have been awesome.

 

[SilentWitness]

Christ I forgot Wigan a Championship side, get to go into the group stage. Not the first time a Championship side got to play in the group stage of course, but will be interesting anyway.

Birmingham actually did alright and were quite unlucky not to get through. Had 10 points in the end and won 3 games.

 

[Eriku]

Same thing happened last season with an Icelandic team. They were runner up in the cup, were relegated. Played in EL and knocked out an Irish team. Then got knocked out themselves in the 2nd round.

So Norwegian cup winners are seeded in the 2nd round then?

iuno about the seeding, tbh.

They were unlucky not to score more... With just one goal and a second leg in 35 degrees or smth to look forward to, I doubt they'll go through to the next round.

 

[Snow]

Interesting stuff. I hadn't been aware of any players from Britain going to Iceland to play.

It increases every season. There are currently 15 that are playing in the top league (12 teams) and one that has already left because he was on loan and was purchased. Same guy was on loan from Portsmouth 3 years ago and was purchased by WBA and then made his PL debut. He's now a League 1 player but only like 21-22 years old.

It's a good league to loan too because we play during the summer. Younger players can get experience without it coming down on their progress in England.

And one nugget for ya. David Moyes' dad used to manage my team here back in the 70's for about 9 games.

 

[Snow]

Europa League stick refs keep on proving their worth.

 

[pillory]

Utrecht are about to be knocked out by the fourth best team in Luxembourg.

 

[SilentWitness]

Hibs out, St Johnstone have the upper hand on Rosenborg atm.

 

[pillory]

Slightly embarrassing score for Hibs?

 

[SilentWitness]

Been in two cup finals for the last two years and were hammered in both. Embarrassing to be beaten 7-0 at home. Shocking.

 

[Spiersey]

Absolutely incredible achievement by St Johnstone. Shame to see Hibs be so badly beaten. Got to be questions asked of the manager. Fenlon's had three massive games and destroyed in all three.

 

[FresnoBob]

Absolutely incredible achievement by St Johnstone. Shame to see Hibs be so badly beaten. Got to be questions asked of the manager. Fenlon's had three massive games and destroyed in all three.

It's great that the Saints went through and best of luck in Minsk, assuming the Belarus embassy doesn't withhold visas for key players.

 

[Spiersey]

It's great that the Saints went through and best of luck in Minsk, assuming the Belarus embassy doesn't withhold visas for key players.

I'm not a Saints fan, just like to see fellow Scottish teams doing well. I'm also genuinely unsure if that last part was a joke.

 

[FresnoBob]

I'm not a Saints fan, just like to see fellow Scottish teams doing well. I'm also genuinely unsure if that last part was a joke.

In todays Yahoo Eurosport.com there was a blog about the Kazakh embassy refusing visas to two players from IL Hodd (Norway). The Norwegians were up 1-0 after the first leg, but lost 2-0 on the road. One of the players denied entry was the coach's son.

Post #9 on this thread mentioned the first leg result.

 

[Sarni]

Lech Poznan and Slask Wroclaw managed to go through although they were up against rather poor teams from Finland and Montenegro. It's going to be tougher for them in the next round as Lech play Zalgiris Vilnius and Slask will play Brugge.

Piast Gliwice were knocked out by Karabagh Agdam of Azerbaijan, second time in 4 years that Karabakh knock out a Polish side (Wisla Krakow previously) - slightly embarrassing.

 

[Gio]

Absolutely incredible achievement by St Johnstone. Shame to see Hibs be so badly beaten. Got to be questions asked of the manager. Fenlon's had three massive games and destroyed in all three.

Yeah that's a great result for St Johnstone, albeit we should be more competitive with these Scandinavian sides in any case. Embarrassing for Hibs though, bloody shambles really.

 

[SilentWitness]

St Johnstone 1-0 up after winning the first leg.

 

[Skorenzy]

Michu put Swansea 1-0 up against Malmö.

 

[Gio]

St Johnstone 1-0 up after winning the first leg.

It would be great if they held out for the group stages. Aberdeen had some rocking nights in the competition a few years back.

 

[ItsEssexRob]

Well worked goal for Bony to head in. Come on Swansea!

The gap between English non top four and scottish non top two must be a chasm if Malmo beat Hibs 0-7.

 

[ItsEssexRob]

St Johnstone 1-0 up after winning the first leg.

Thats two 1-0 away wins in a row for St Johnston. Edit.. 3-0 Swansea, Bony boy again!

 

[LR7]

Thats two 1-0 away wins in a row for St Johnston. Edit.. 3-0 Swansea, Bony boy again!

Him and Michu look like they might be a good pairing up front.

 

[ItsEssexRob]

David Moyes looking a bit concerned in the stands there about how United are going to avoid being torn apart on opening day by this Swansea team!

 

[ItsEssexRob]

Him and Michu look like they might be a good pairing up front.

Combining well tonight, looks like another fine season for Swansea if they play like this.

 

[SilentWitness]

Well worked goal for Bony to head in. Come on Swansea!

The gap between English non top four and scottish non top two must be a chasm if Malmo beat Hibs 0-7.

Bony probably cost twice as much as the whole Hibs squad.

 

[ItsEssexRob]

What a classy goal that was. Swansea are a good side this season!

 

[Maagge]

What a goal by Swansea.
Pozuelo 4-0.

 

[LoveInTheAsylum]

Only half watched the match but it seems like Swansea added a lot of much-needed physicality over the summer. Jordi Amat seems to like a challenge.

 

[Spiersey]

It would be great if they held out for the group stages. Aberdeen had some rocking nights in the competition a few years back.

Smashed Copenhagen 4-0 at home and then drew 2-2 with Bayern. Two games ill never forget, quite simply the best games I've ever been to.