Aberdeen’s list of potential first qualifying round opponents in the Europa League has been whittled down to five following the group draw this morning.
The Dons will be seeded for the first round and have placed in Group 3 alongside fellow seeds Brondby, Dinamo Minsk, Nomme Kalju and Shamrock Rovers.
Derek McInnes’ side will face either Trakai of Lithuania, Finnish club RoPS Rovaniemi, Latvian club Jurmala, Valur Reykjavik of Iceland of Luxembourg side Fola Esch, one of the lowest ranked teams in the tournament.
Aberdeen will head to Lithuania, Finland, Latvia, Iceland or Luxembourg in the first qualifying round of the Europa League when the draw is made at lunchtime today.
The Dons have been seeded for the first qualifying round and now know their list of potential opponents has been whittled down to five.
Here’s what you need to know about the potential clubs lying in wait for Derek McInnes’ side.
Trakai (Lithuania)
Formed: 2005
Ground: LFF Stadium (5,400 capacity)
Manager: Valdas Urbonas
The team, which plays in an all yellow home kit, finished second in the A Lyga last season. This will be their second European campaign with the club losing to Apollon Limassol in the second qualifying round last summer.
Rovaniemi (Finland)
Formed: 1950
Ground: Keskuskentta (4.000 capacity)
Manager: Juha Malinen
The team, which plays in blue shirts, white shorts and blue socks, finished second in the Veikkausliiga last season and their best European performance to date came in 1988 when they reached the quarter-finals of the Cup Winners’ Cup. This summer will be only their second European campaign in the last 25 years with the club losing in the second qualifying round in 2015 to Asteras Tripoli.
Spartaks Jurmala (Latvia)
Formed: 2007
Ground: Slokas Stadium (2,500 capacity)
Manager: Oleg Kubarev
The club, which played in red shirts and shorts, and white socks, finished fifth in the Virsliga last season and will be making their second appearance in Europe, having lost 4-1 on aggregate to Vojvodina in the second qualifying round last year.
Valur (Iceland)
Formed: 1911
Ground: Vodafone Field (1,524 capacity)
Manager: Olafur Johannesson
Former Don Jim Bett famously played for Reykjavik based Valur, who finished fifth in the Urvalsdeid last season and won the Icelandic Cup. The club, which plays in red shirts, white shorts and red socks, boasts a Scot in their line-up in former Dunfermline full back Iain Williamson.
Fola Esch (Luxembourg)
Formed: 1906
Ground: Stade Emile Mayrisch (3,900 capacity)
Manager: Cyril Serredszum
The Luxeumbourg National Division champions, who play in red and white stripes, is one of the lowest ranked teams in the first qualifying round and the one the Dons will be hoping to be paired with. This will be their fourth campaign in Europe in the club’s history but their third in a row. They lost to GNK Dinamo in the second qualifying round of the Uefa Champions League last year.
