Who TNS could face in Champions League qualifying including NIFL Premiership champions Larne

We are only a couple of days away now from knowing who TNS first opponents in the next edition of the UEFA Champions League will be.

While the road to London may have just ended with Real Madrid lifting the trophy for an astonishing 15^th time, the road to Munich is just about to begin, and on June 18^th, TNS will know their first qualifying round opponents.

This year, the Saints will enter as a seeded team which, in essence, should give them a kinder draw and better chance of reaching the next round.

However, some tricky teams lie in the unseeded part of the draw. Here, we take a look at some of the sides that could be making their way to Park Hall in July.

Dinamo Batumi (Georgia)

The highest-ranked unseeded team in this season’s first qualifying round lie in Georgia’s second biggest city, and in the form of Dinamo Batumi.

The club celebrated their centenary last year, and they ended the season in style by lifting their second ever Erovnuli Liga title, having won their first in 2021. The Georgian league runs between March and December, and currently after 18 games, Batumi sit fourth in the table and eight points behind the current leaders.

In terms of their playing squad, Batumi boast an impressive blend of homegrown talent and international players. Their youth system is revered across the country, with their most recent star being Kvicha Kvaratshkelia, who moved to Napoli in 2022 for around £10 million. Another player to look out for Giorgi Tsitaishvili, who will be representing Georgia at Euro 2024. The team also boasts an eye raising five Brazilians.

Their recent European history isn’t exactly stellar. Having reached the third qualifying round of the UEFA Conference League in 2021, the club haven’t reached the same heights since. In 2022 they were knocked out in the second qualifying round of the Conference League by Polish giants Lech Poznan, while last year, they fell at the first hurdle in Europe’s third tier competition, losing to Albanian side Tirana.

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Celje (Slovenia)

Another one of the highest ranked unseeded teams in this year’s draw are Celje of Slovenia.

Like Dinamo Batumi, Celje won their second ever Slovenian First League title last season ahead of well-established sides like Maribor and Olimpija Ljubliana.

The squad mainly consists of home-grown Slovenian talent. Defender Žan Karničnik joined the club permanently in January and has 27 caps for Slovenia. He is also Celje’s only representative in Slovenia’s Euro 2024 squad. Elsewhere, a name that might be familiar to fans on these shores is Rolando Aarons, who started his career at Newcastle United.

When it comes to their European pedigree, Celje have been very close to reaching European group stages on their past two occasions. In 2021, they were knocked out in the third qualifying round of the Europa League after losing a one-legged game to Armenian side Ararat-Armenia.

Last year, they went even closer. They reached the playoff round of the Conference League but were defeated 5-2 on aggregate by Israeli side Maccabi Tel-Aviv. On paper, Celje could well be the toughest unseeded side there is.

Larne (Northern Ireland)

The shortest trip the Saints could make would be to Northern Ireland, where they could face Larne.

Based in County Antrim, Larne have had a great rise over the last couple of season, and this campaign, have completed back-to-back league and cup doubles, stopping powerhouses Linfield in the process.

There are plenty of former Football League talent in this Larne team. Captain Cian Bolger has played for the likes of Fleetwood Town and Bristol Rovers, midfielder Mark Randall came through the youth team at Arsenal before playing some games for Newport County, while his midfield partner Joe Thomson had time in the Celtic and Rangers academy.

Larne’s European history is incredibly recent, having played their first game in the 2021 edition of the Conference League. Their first game saw them defeat Bala Town and reach the third qualifying round, where they were defeated by Portuguese side Pacos de Ferreira.

Since then, their appearances in continental competitions have been short and sweet, as they’ve been dumped out by St. Joseph’s of Gibraltar and Ballkani of Kosovo in consecutive years.

FK Panevėžys (Lithuania)

One of the most interesting sides in the draw are Lithuanian champions FK Panevėžys.

The club were only formed in 2015, but within nine years have lifted their first ever A Lyga. They also won the Lithuanian Cup in 2020 and are two-time Lithuanian Super Cup winners. However, Lithuania’s season takes place during the summer, and after 15 games, Penevėžys currently find themselves ninth in a ten-team league and occupy the relegation playoff place.

The side is an incredibly international one. In and amongst Lithuanian players are some from Argentina, Brazil, and England. Striker Noel Mbo came through at Gillingham but has called Lithuania home since 2023. German defender Malcolm Cacutalua has a handful of appearances for Bayer Leverkusen, while Jeffrey Sarpong has played for Ajax and Real Sociedad.

This will be the club’s first time playing in the Champions League, having only played in the Conference League in previous years, but didn’t pull up any trees. The furthest they reached was the second qualifying round, but they were knocked out by Serbia’s Vojvodina and Israel’s Hapoel Be’er Sheva respectively.

The draw for the Champions League first qualifying round will take place on June 18^th, with the first legs being played between the 9^th and 10^th of July, with the second legs taking place a week later on the 16^th and 17^th of July.

All possible opponents TNS could face

Dinamo Batumi (Georgia), Celje (Slovenia), Ħamrun Spartans (Malta), Larne (Northern Ireland), Dinamo Minsk (Belarus), FK Panevėžys (Lithuania), Ordabasy (Kazakhstan), Struga (North Macedonia), Differdange 03 (Luxembourg), Dečić (Montenegro), Egnatia (Albania), UE Santa Coloma (Andorra), Virtus (San Marino)

(Pic By John Smith/FAW)