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UEFA Europa League & Conference League (2023/24)

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West Ham, Liverpool and Brighton will discover their Europa League group stage opponents this week.

Both West Ham and Liverpool are in Pot 1. with Brighton’s in Pot 3. Clubs from the same country cannot face each other at this stage.

Ajax and Sparta Prague were among the sides to book their place in the Europa League draw with play-off victories on Thursday night.


When is the Europa League draw?

The Europa League draw takes place at 12pm BST on Friday, September 1 and is followed by the Europa Conference League draw at 1.30pm.


Qualified teams and pots for Europa League draw

Pot 1: West Ham, Liverpool, Roma, Ajax, Villarreal, Bayer Leverkusen, Atalanta, Rangers

Pot 2: Sporting CP, Slavia Prague, Rennes, Olympiacos, Real Betis, LASK, Marseille, Qarabag

Pot 3: Molde, Brighton, Sheriff Tiraspol, Union SG, Freiburg, Sparta Prague, Maccabi Haifa, Sturm Graz

Pot 4: Toulouse, AEK Athens, Hacken, TSC, Servette, Panathinaikos, Rakow Czestochowa, Aris Limassol


When will the Europa League group stage matches be played?

Matchday 1: September 21

Matchday 2: October 5

Matchday 3: October 26

Matchday 4: November 9

Matchday 5: November 30

Matchday 6: December 14
 
Full group line-ups

Group A: West Ham, Olympiacos, Freiburg, TSC Bracka Topola

Group B: Ajax, Marseille, Brighton, AEK Athens

Group C: Rangers, Real Betis, Sparta Prague, Aris Limassol

Group D: Atalanta, Sporting Lisbon, Sturm Graz, Rakow Czestochowa

Group E: Liverpool, LASK, Union St-Gilloise, Toulouse

Group F: Villarreal, Rennes, Maccabi Haifa, Panathinaikos

Group G: Roma, Slavia Prague, Sheriff Tiraspol, Servette

Group H: Bayer Leverkusen, Qarabag, Molde, Hacken
 
Liverpool should be winning this competition.

Should play the kids at home against these teams and rest the main players for the League.
 
Liverpool came from behind to beat LASK Linz 3-1 as they made a winning start to their Europa League campaign.

Brighton's eagerly awaited European bow fell flat as Greek heavyweights AEK Athens stunned Roberto de Zerbi's men with a 3-2 Europa League group stage victory.

Mohammed Kudus scored his first West Ham goal as the Europa Conference League holders came from behind to beat Serbian side Backa Topola 3-1 in the opening game of their Europa League group campaign.

Aston Villa made a poor start to a first European campaign in 13 years as some appalling defending allowed Legia Warsaw to get the better of them in their Europa Conference League group opener.
 
Europa League Matches to be played today.

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Today's Europa League Fixtures (26 October 2023)

APO6fQx.png
 
West Ham slipped to their first Europa League defeat of the season as they were narrowly beaten 2-1 at Olympiakos.

Brighton claimed a historic first win in European football against Ajax to keep alive their hopes of reaching the Europa League knockout stages.

Rangers emerged with a precious Europa League point from Prague after a testing night against Sparta.

A much-changed Liverpool side continued their perfect record in the Europa League with a ruthless 5-1 win over French club Toulouse in Group E.

Romelu Lukaku scored in his 14th consecutive Europa League game as Roma beat Czech side Slavia Prague 2-0.
 
Europa Conference League HT Score:

Maccabi Tel-Aviv 1-0 Zorya Luhansk
 
Aston Villa: Four officers injured in clashes with Legia Warsaw fans

Thirty-nine people have been arrested after violence broke out in the build-up to Aston Villa's game with Legia Warsaw in Birmingham on Thursday night.

Four police officers were hurt in clashes with away fans near Villa Park.

West Midlands Police said officers were "faced with disgusting and highly dangerous scenes", including having flares thrown at them.

The Europa Conference League tie went ahead with away fans blocked from entering the stadium over safety fears.

Officers with batons and shields were seen trying to regain control of the area while missiles were launched at them as fans of the Polish side attempted to force their way through barriers.

Several videos posted on social media showed the disorder, including missiles being thrown at fans in the ground from a road adjacent to a stand.

West Midlands Police said one of the injured officers had been taken to hospital, and said two police horses and two police dogs had also been hurt.

Disorder is believed to have been triggered by tensions over restrictions on the number of away fans who were going to be permitted to enter Villa Park for the match.

Police said the allocation for visiting supporters had been reduced to 1,000 tickets on the advice of local emergency services, adding Legia fans had "been involved in previous match day disorder".

In a statement posted on the club website ahead of the game, the Polish side accused Aston Villa of restricting access to their fans despite assurances, calling the move "counterproductive and baseless".

It said the club's owner and other senior executives who were due to be at the game were boycotting it in response to the move.

In a statement released after the match, Chief Inspector Tim Robinson said: "This should have been a great evening of football which was enjoyed by fans from both clubs.

"Unfortunately, there were appalling scenes which saw away fans dangerously throw flares and other missiles at our officers."

He said "due to the extreme violence" police were left with "no other choice but to prevent away fans entering the stadium. The safety of everyone is our priority, and clearly we had no other option."

Aston Villa said in a statement: "In spite of numerous requests for cooperation from Legia Warsaw concerning their travelling supporters, especially in the last two days, no assistance on the serious safety matter of away fans attending Villa Park was forthcoming from the visiting club.

"The club has repeatedly, including this morning, raised concerns in conjunction with Uefa and all the relevant authorities to Legia that ticketless away supporters were attempting to attend Villa Park."

West Midlands mayor Andy Street urged Uefa - European football's governing body - to "swiftly... take strong action" against Legia Warsaw.

Dutch police officers were injured during large-scale disorder during their match against AZ Alkmaar last month.

Aston Villa won the game 2-1 courtesy of a 58th minute goal by Alex Moreno.
​
www.bbc.com

Aston Villa: Four officers injured in clashes with Legia Warsaw fans

Police make 39 arrests after clashing with Legia Warsaw fans outside Aston Villa's stadium.
www.bbc.com
 
Today's Europa league fixtures Half time Scores. Matchday 6 (14 December 2023)

Rennes 1-1 Villarreal
Panathinaikos 1-0 Maccabi Haifa
Qarabag FK 2-0 Häcken
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Liverpool will play Sparta Prague in the last 16 of the Europa League, while Brighton have been drawn against Roma.

West Ham have been paired with Freiburg and Scottish Premiership leaders Rangers will face Benfica.

The first legs of the ties will take place on 7 March, with the second legs to be played a week later on 14 March.

Aston Villa will discover their last-16 opponents in the Europa Conference League when the draw for that competition takes place at 12:00 GMT.

Premier League leaders Liverpool sealed their place in the last 16 with a game to spare in November, avoiding February's play-off round by topping their group.

The Reds, who have won the competition three times and finished runners-up in 2016, are still contesting four trophies this season and face Chelsea in the League Cup final on Sunday.

The Europa League knockout round play-offs, in which the runners-up from the Europa League group stages faced teams who finished third in the Champions League group stages, concluded on Thursday.

The eight group winners, who will each play at home in the second legs, advanced straight to the last 16 and were seeded in Friday's draw against the eight knockout play-off round winners.

West Ham, who also qualified in the penultimate round of group fixtures, were crowned Europa Conference League winners last season after reaching the Europa League semi-finals in 2022.

They have already beaten German club Freiburg twice in this season's competition, winning 2-0 at home and 2-1 away against their Group A opponents.

Brighton, playing European football for the first time in the club's history, beat Marseille in their final group game to progress as group winners.

Roberto de Zerbi's side will take on last season's runners-up Roma, who are sixth in Serie A and overcame Feyenoord in a penalty shootout on Thursday.

BBC Sport

www.bbc.com

Liverpool meet Sparta Prague in Europe, Brighton get Roma

Liverpool will play Sparta Prague in the Europa League last 16, while Brighton face Roma and West Ham
www.bbc.com www.bbc.com
 

Europa League final: Uefa says ticketless fans 'could be a problem' in Dublin​


Uefa says ticketless fans "could be a problem" at the Europa League final at Dublin's Aviva Stadium on 22 May.

It "would be extremely challenging" to accommodate supporters if clubs with bigger fanbases reached the final, says general secretary Theodore Theodoridis.

Liverpool, Rangers and West Ham could all be in Friday's quarter-final draw.

In 2022, Uefa apologised after Liverpool fans were penned in and teargassed before the Champions League final in Paris.

Uefa and French authorities initially blamed ticketless fans for the events.

However, an independent report found Uefa bore "primary responsibility" for the chaotic scenes that saw kick-off delayed by 36 minutes.

There was also criticism of the 2023 Champions League final in Istanbul, with fans reportedly having to walk extended distances along busy roads, queue for hours for transport to and from the stadium and being left without water as Manchester City beat Inter Milan on 10 June.

Liverpool and Rangers, who have reached recent European finals, have huge fanbases with lots of supporters from the Republic of Ireland or Northern Ireland.

West Ham took around 20,000 fans to Prague for their Europa Conference League final victory against Fiorentina in June 2023.

"There are a couple of pairings that would be extremely challenging in terms of finding ways to accommodate everyone who wanted to be in Dublin," Theodoridis said.

"We have gone to reserve Croke Park as a potential viewing venue but it might not be enough.

"We work with the local authority and Football Supporters Europe but the number of supporters without tickets could be a problem."

Source: BBC
 
Rangers' Europa League campaign crashed to an end as Rafa Silva's breakaway goal proved decisive to send Benfica into the quarter-finals after another thrilling encounter at Ibrox.

Silva raced onto Angel Di Maria's second-half knockdown to cut across Mohamed Diomande and fire past the exposed Jack Butland, with Rangers badly exposed from their own corner.

The strike was initially ruled offside before A VAR review determined that the Portuguese had just stayed inside his own half before showing exquisite execution to silence a raucous stadium.

Rangers failed to muster a real fightback as Roger Schmidt's side managed the game well to secure progression.

Source: BBC
 
West Ham recorded the biggest European win in their history as they swept aside Freiburg to overturn a first-leg deficit and march into a third successive quarter-final.

Before the match David Moyes evoked the memories of their comeback win against Sevilla at the same stage of the competition two seasons ago - and this time Hammers boss got a similar outcome.

Yet unlike that night against the Spaniards, when the home fans were tortured by tension and did not seal victory until extra-time, West Ham had the job wrapped up within an hour against a poor Freiburg side.

Lucas Paqueta pulled them level in the tie after just nine minutes as he slid in unmarked to turn home Tomas Soucek's near-post flick from barely a yard.

Follow West Ham v Freiburg and the rest of Thursday's Europa League action
Jarrod Bowen continued his excellent season with his 18th strike of the campaign just after the half hour to put West Ham ahead on aggregate.

Veteran defender Aaron Cresswell then scored his first goal in almost two years as the visiting defence allowed him too much space to shoot.

The contest was finished but there was still time for Mohammed Kudus to make an impact as the Ghanaian scored twice in the final 15 minutes as West Ham completed their biggest win since Moyes returned to the club in December 2019.

They have now recorded an impressive 26 European victories in their trio of campaigns under Moyes. Before this run, they had achieved 25 in their history, including in the Intertoto Cup.

Source: BBC Sports
 
Liverpool will play Atalanta in the quarter-finals of the Europa League with West Ham set to face Bayer Leverkusen.

Italian rivals AC Milan and Roma meet for a place in the semi-finals, while Portuguese club Benfica take on Ligue 1 side Marseille.

Meanwhile, Aston Villa have been drawn against Lille in the quarter-finals of the Conference League.

The first legs take place on 11 April, with the second legs on 18 April.

If Liverpool come through their tie, they will face either Benfica or Marseille in the semi-finals, with West Ham meeting AC Milan or Roma if they find a way past Bundesliga leaders Leverkusen.

The semi-finals are scheduled for 2 May and 9 May.

Dublin Arena in the Republic of Ireland hosts this season's final on Wednesday, 22 May.

Europa League quarter-finals draw​


AC Milan v Roma

Liverpool v Atalanta

Bayer Leverkusen v West Ham

Benfica v Marseille

Semi-finals draw​


Benfica or Marseille v Liverpool or Atalanta

AC Milan or Roma v Bayer Leverkusen or West Ham

Liverpool still have the potential to pick up four trophies in Jurgen Klopp's final season in charge after they beatCzech club Sparta Prague 11-2 on aggregate in the last 16, winning 6-1 in the second leg at Anfield on Thursday.

Atalanta and Liverpool have met on two previous occasions, with the Reds winning 5-0 in Italy and losing 2-0 at home during the group stage of the Champions League in 2020-21.

The Italian club are sixth in Serie A and are yet to lose in the Europa League this season, winning five and drawing three.

West Ham, who won the Europa Conference League last season, go up against Bayer Leverkusen for the first time.

The Hammers saw off German opposition in the last 16, beating Freiburg 5-1 on aggregate, coming back from a 1-0 loss in the first leg with a 5-0 win at London Stadium.

They have a record of six wins, six defeats and one draw when facing German teams in Europe.

Leverkusen are 10 points clear of second-placed Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga, and have not lost a match in all competitions this season, winning 32 and drawing five.

Aston Villa reached the last eight of a major European competition for the first time since 1998 with a 4-0 aggregate win against Dutch giants Ajax in the Conference League.

Villa have never previously met Lille but have picked up two wins, two losses and two draws when facing French opposition in European competition.

Club Bruges meet PAOK, Olympiacos face Fenerbahce and Viktoria Plzen have been drawn against Fiorentina.

If Villa come through their quarter-final tie they take on either Olympiacos or Fenerbahce in the semi-finals.

The 2023-24 Europa Conference League final will be staged at the AEK Arena in Athens, Greece, on Wednesday, 29 May.

Conference League quarter-finals draw​


Club Bruges v PAOK

Olympiacos v Fenerbahce

Aston Villa v Lille

Viktoria Plzen v Fiorentina

Semi-finals draw​

Aston Villa or Lille v Olympiacos or Fenerbahce

Viktoria Plzen or Fiorentina v Club Bruges or PAOK

Victories for West Ham and Aston Villa in the Europa League and Conference respectively on Thursday have boosted England's hopes of securing five places in next season's revamped Champions League.

The group stage of 2024-25 Champions League will be re-structured to feature 36 clubs rather than 32, opening up two extra places for Europe's best-performing leagues in Uefa competitions.

Prior to Thursday's games, Italy and Germany were first and second in Uefa's coefficient table with England third.

West Ham beat German club Freiburg to reach the quarter-finals while Villa came through their tie with Ajax.

England remain behind Germany but have five clubs remaining across the three European competitions - Champions League, Europa League and Conference League - with three German teams still involved.

 
Liverpool v Milan seems the likely European final

UCL needs an El Classico final
 
Absolute shocker Liverpool will need to write another chapter in their coveted history to overcome Atalanta
 

Liverpool name 24-man travelling squad for Atalanta tie​


The Reds departed John Lennon Airport this afternoon for the second leg of the quarter-final tie, in which they will attempt to overturn a three-goal deficit from the first encounter.

Jürgen Klopp has selected 24 players to make the trip for the fixture in Italy.

Liverpool travelling squad: Alisson, Gomez, Endo, Van Dijk, Konate, Diaz, Szoboszlai, Nunez, Mac Allister, Salah, Adrian, Jones, Gakpo, Elliott, Jota, Tsimikas, Robertson, Gravenberch, Clark, McConnell, Kelleher, Alexander-Arnold, Danns, Quansah.

www.liverpoolfc.com

Liverpool name 24-man travelling squad for Atalanta tie - Liverpool FC

Liverpool have named a 24-man travelling party for the Europa League clash with Atalanta on Thursday night.
www.liverpoolfc.com www.liverpoolfc.com
 
Will Liverpool do some magic tonight
=====
Europa Conference League quarter-final second leg:

Lille v Aston Villa (agg: 1-2) -

Europa League quarter-final second legs:

Atalanta v Liverpool (agg: 3-0) -

West Ham v Bayer Leverkusen (agg: 0-2) -
 
The Bald Eagle said:
Liverpool 1-0 up against Atlanta but still a 2 goal deficit to overcome.
Click to expand...

Liverpool playing like Liverpool, always a chance . I think Liverpool will score 2 goals but Atlanta will get chances to score & probably will.

It’s not going to be easy for Atlanta …
 
Emiliano Martinez with the batameezi just pushed us into our first European semi since 1982!! that was a nerve-racking watch
 
Liverpool's hopes of ending Jurgen Klopp's reign with a European trophy are over after they failed to overturn a first-leg deficit against Atalanta.

The Reds travelled to Italy on the back of a 3-0 defeat at Anfield last Thursday and, despite controlling the game for the large periods, could not find the required goals and lost 3-1 on aggregate.

Mohamed Salah's seventh-minute penalty, after a Trent Alexander-Arnold cross was handled, gave them hope.

As the first half drew to a close, the Egypt forward lofted well wide when put through one-on-one, but Klopp's side struggled to create meaningful openings in the second period.

It marks the end of a difficult 12 days for the Reds, who drew at Manchester United and lost at home to Crystal Palace to surrender their lead at the top of the Premier League.

Attention will now turn back to the title race with Liverpool sitting third behind second-placed Arsenal and two points off leaders Manchester City.

The league now represents their final chance to give Klopp a fairytale ending to his eight-and-a-half years on Merseyside and add to their success in the Carabao Cup in February.
 
In case of any confusion after Emi Martinez's second yellow card during the penalty shootout, IFAB rules dictate any cards from the match do NOT carry over into the shootout.

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Can Unai Emery win another European glory with a new side​

====

Europa Conference League: Early Villa goal ruled out​

 
Delusional Premier League fans humbled again. They think there is no football outside their overrated league.
 
Fiorentina reached back-to-back Europa Conference League finals as a late penalty gave them a 4-3 aggregate win over Club Bruges.

Lucas Beltran tucked home an 85th-minute spot-kick after Brandon Mechele was judged to have fouled M'Bala Nzola.

Maxim de Cuyper had pulled Club Bruges level in the tie, after Fiorentina won the first leg 3-2 in Florence.

But the Italians earned a 1-1 draw in Belgium which sees them through to face Aston Villa or Olympiakos in the final.

Fiorentina will be aiming to go one better than in last season's Conference League, when they were beaten in the final by West Ham.

Bruges went ahead in the second leg through left-back De Cuyper, who found himself in the centre-forward position to flick home a quick in-swinging cross from the left.

Fiorentina thereafter assumed control of the game despite a feverish home atmosphere at Jan Breydel Stadium, with the action even having to be paused early in the second half as the volume of flares set off meant the referee could not see the sidelines.

The Serie A side hit the woodwork three times in Bruges. Christian Kouame rattled the crossbar in the 35th minute with a powerful snap shot which bounced down and away with goalkeeper Simon Mignolet stranded.

Fiorentina then hit the frame of the goal twice in two second-half minutes - captain Cristiano Biraghi struck the bar with a left-footed free-kick from 20 yards, before Kouame suffered his second stroke of misfortune with a header.

Their deserved place in the final was eventually secured when Mechele caught Nzola with his knee as the Fiorentina substitute stooped for a header, Beltran tucking his penalty into the bottom left corner.

Bruges nearly forced extra time as Hans Vanaken's late low shot was saved, after former Fulham defender Denis Odoi - who had already been substituted - was sent off from the bench after clashing with a Fiorentina player.

Source: BBC
 
Florian wirtz of Bayer Leverkusen is a serious talent. He's as good as any of Musiala or Bellingham or any other top young player.
 
The Europa League has once again proven its unpredictability and competitiveness with the recent elimination of Aston Villa. Aston Villa’s journey in the competition was commendable, with notable victories against Ajax and Lille but Olympiakos was proved to be too much for them to handle in the end.
 
aboveandbeyond said:
Florian wirtz of Bayer Leverkusen is a serious talent. He's as good as any of Musiala or Bellingham or any other top young player.
Click to expand...
Great player for sure, technically he is far better than Bellingham and on par with Musiala and Foden and extremely similar to them as well.

Bellingham is a star no doubt but he gets grouped into a league of players that are all superior than him technically.

Bellingham has a knack of scoring goals and and has a lot of charisma that hides his deficiencies, but he cannot do what Wirtz does for Leverkusen of Musiala does for Bayern of Foden does for City or Odegaard does for Arsenal, albeit Odegaard, like Bellingham, has a very different profile from Wirtz, Musiala and Foden.

It will be interesting to see how much influence Bellingham has next season because after a it signing Mbappe, Madrid will revert to a a more traditional 4-3-3 and Bellingham will have less freedom to bomb forward and score goals when he will not be playing at the tip of the diamond.

Wirtz would be fantastic for Arsenal on the LW, but it seems like that ship has sailed now. He was someone that could have been bought a year or two earlier.
 

Unbeaten season v 61-year trophy drought - which will end?​

The stakes are high in Wednesday's Europa League final at Dublin's Aviva Stadium - even higher than usual.

For Bayer Leverkusen, this is the chance to wrap up part two of a treble - and take them to within 90 minutes of an unprecedented unbeaten season.

For Atalanta, it is the opportunity to lift major silverware for the first time since 1963.

Something has to give.

Xabi Alonso's Leverkusen have created headlines around the world with their 51-game unbeaten run in all competitions which has taken them to a first Bundesliga title. This from a club which had only won the 1988 Uefa Cup and 1993 German Cup.

The Spaniard, in his first full season as a senior manager, said: "Our focus is preparing the game, not [as] a special game. We haven’t changed anything.

"We have played 51 games. The players have understanding. Now is the time to give our best.

"We have been preparing for this moment through the whole year. It’s not just today's job. I have a great team. The players are ready for sure. I have a good feeling it will not be different. We will respect Atalanta but we have confidence in our game."

The two finalists ended British hopes in the Europa League quarter-finals with Bayer Leverkusen knocking out West Ham and Atalanta stunning Liverpool.

Atalanta boss Gian Piero Gasperini, whose side are without captain Marten de Roon through injury, said: "I think we are in the best possible condition in a psychological and physical sense.

"Leverkusen are a complete team, extremely organised. They are versatile, they can defend and recover the ball well. The results they have achieved this season are not an accident.

"We have to respect them and try to adapt quickly to the opponents we are facing."

www.bbc.com

Europa League final: Bayer Leverkusen v Atalanta preview

Bayer Leverkusen and Atalanta meet in Wednesday's Europa League final with the game meaning a great deal to both clubs for different reasons.
www.bbc.com
 
2-0 Atalanta after 25 minutes

Lookman with both goals, 2nd one was a stunner
 
1716414400611.png

Ademola Lookman scored a sensational hat-trick as Atalanta ended a 61-year trophy drought while devastating Bayer Leverkusen’s dream of an unbeaten season in the Europa League final at a boisterous Aviva Stadium.

Both sides brought a huge amount of support and colour to Dublin for what was Atalanta’s first European final and only Leverkusen’s third.

Xabi Alonso’s Leverkusen had not lost in 51 games this season and were only two matches from perfection.

But former Charlton Athletic winger Lookman had other ideas.

He placed the opening goal in the top corner from Davide Zappacosta’s cutback.

And his second would have lit up any European final, as he nutmegged Granit Xhaka before bending a fantastic shot into the bottom corner from 20 yards.

Lookman's third was equally as good, a step-over beating Edmond Tapsoba before he fired into the roof of the net.

Leverkusen, whose story has been filled with amazing, dramatic comebacks, could not fashion another this time.

Thanks to Gian Piero Gasperini’s tactical masterclass, a wonderful pressing game and Lookman, Atalanta now have a second trophy to add next to the 1963 Coppa Italia in their cabinet in Bergamo.

And it books them a place in next season’s Champions League, which was not yet guaranteed through Serie A.
 
Ineos confident of Man Utd-Nice Europa League solution

Ineos is "confident" of finding a solution that allows Manchester United and Nice to compete in next season's Europa League.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe's Ineos company owns a 27.7% stake in United and are in control of the club's football operations, while they completed a takeover of French club Nice in 2019.

Uefa rules restrict the influence any organisation can have over more than one club in the same competition.

An independent panel will rule on the matter before next season's competition starts in the middle of July with the qualifying rounds.

Uefa's regulations meant Belgian club Union Saint-Gilloise had to alter its ownership structure last season to allow it to compete in the Europa League alongside Brighton, whose owner Tony Bloom had been a pivotal figure for both clubs.

Aston Villa and Portuguese side Vitoria Guimaraes faced the same scenario in the Europa Conference League.

It is also a situation Manchester City and Spanish side Girona will have to address this summer given they are both part of the City Football Group and have qualified for next season's Champions League.

If a solution is not found United would have to drop into the Conference League as they finished lower in the Premier League last season than fifth-placed Nice did in Ligue 1.

However Ineos is confident that scenario will be avoided.

"We are aware of the position of both clubs and are in direct dialogue with Uefa," it said.

"We are confident we have a route forward for next season in Europe."

Ineos also owns Swiss Super League club FC Lausanne-Sport, but they have not qualified for European competition.


BBC
 
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Ayoub El Kaabi struck four minutes from the end of extra time as Olympiakos beat Fiorentina in the Europa Conference League final to become the first Greek side to win a European trophy.

The Moroccan striker, hero of Olympiakos' run to the final, stooped low to head in Santiago Hezze's cross and spark pandemonium in the AEK Arena in Athens.

A lengthy video assistant referee check confirmed El Kaabi's 11th goal of the competition and their place in Greek footballing history.

It is a second year of dramatic heartbreak for Fiorentina after the Italian side were beaten by West Ham in last season's final thanks to Jarrod Bowen's late goal.
 
Ajax beat Panathinaikos 13-12 on penalties after an epic shootout featuring 34 spot-kicks to reach the Europa League qualifying play-off round

Goalkeeper Remko Pasveer, 40, saved five penalties and scored one, while defender Anton Gaaei scored the winning kick for Ajax.

The Dutch side won despite the Netherlands striker Brian Brobbey missing two spot-kicks, with Bertrand Traore and Youri Baas also off target.

Manager Francesco Farioli said the shootout, which lasted 25 minutes in total, was "incredible".

"The spirit and dedication of the team were amazing tonight," he told Ziggo Sport. "We are not perfect, but we can't say that the players didn't give it their all."

It is the second-biggest penalty shootout score in a European competition, narrowly behind Glentoran's 14-13 defeat by Gzira United in Conference League qualifying last season.

The game went to a shootout after the Greek side won 1-0 in Amsterdam to level the tie at 1-1, with Tete scoring in the 89th minute before a goalless extra time.

Farioli added: "It's difficult to go into a penalty shootout after a game like that. It may have taken a little longer, but we've taken another important step."

Victory sets up a two-legged play-off against Polish side Jagiellonia Bialystok this month as Ajax look to reach the league phase.

BBC
 
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