After the Champions League and the Europa League, it's time for the youngest UEFA club competition - the Conference League started last night with matches in Istanbul and Guimaraes, and all other 1st round matches will take place today.
Just like the two higher-quality competitions, the Conference League will be played in a new format - the first stage will be a league with 36 teams, the best eight will qualify for the round of 9, while the clubs that occupy positions from 24th to XNUMXth will face an additional playoff. All below will complete European adventures.
In relation to LŠ and LE, the teams will play six, not eight, games in the league part.
Unlike previous seasons, the competition that started in 2021 will now have an absolute favorite - Chelsea, the giants who were European champions just three years ago.
And yes, the "blues" and their coach Enzo Maresca they don't expect many problems in the league phase, and the fact that the best player speaks for itself Kola Palmera they didn't even register for this competition.
Chelsea's first rival from 21:XNUMX p.m. at Stamford Bridge will be Gent, and before that match, Maresca explained why he doesn't have a guy who is perhaps in the best shape in the Premier League right now.
- He is a player that we really need and we had to think about how to protect him with additional efforts - said the Italian expert.
In addition to Chelsea, the big names in the Conference League include Fiorentina, Betis, Panathinaikos, Rapid from Vienna, and Germany's Heidenheim will also be tricky.
Two "falcons", Jovetić is waiting for January
Two Montenegrin players will also play in the first phase of the Conference League, while the captain of the "Falcons" could join them in January.
Marko Vukcevic will be one of the trump cards of the fighter from Banja Luka in the historic performance of the Bosnian club in the main stage of a UEFA competition, while Novica Erakovic and his Omonia to play and for Stevan Jovetić.
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The biggest reinforcement in the history of the Cypriot club arrived only recently, so there was no possibility to register for the first stage, but if the club from Nicosia goes further, Jo-Jo will be a big reinforcement.
Omonia welcomes Vikungur at the start (18.45:21 p.m.), while Borac will host Panathinaikos (XNUMX p.m.).
Many new clubs
Borac, Celje, Cercl Bruges, Heidenheim, Jagiellonia, Larn, Noa, Paphos, Petrokub, TNS and Víkingur will play in the main phase of UEFA competitions for the first time in history, and some names like the representatives of Northern Ireland and Wales are once again the best indicator of Montenegrin clubs that the European autumn does not seem so far away.
The final will be played in May 2025 in Wroclaw, and the winner will buy a ticket to the Europa League.
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