Benfica will participate in the third Champions League qualifying round, having finished third in the last tournament.
The Reds are the second team with the best coefficients (58,000) on the non-champions route, behind Shakhtar (79,000) and ahead of Monaco (36,000) and Celtic (34,000), all of them also ranked, and as such, they were knocked out of the tournament. From the list of potential opponents on this tour.
However, the Scots still had to ensure their presence, through the second qualifying round, and Monaco would be able to qualify directly to the group stage without playing, should Manchester United win the European League. In this scenario, the fifth slogan with the best coefficient, Genk (30,000), would rise to the top and not be able to compete with the Red. This scenario will be confirmed or disproved on Wednesday with the finalists in Gdansk, Poland.
The Belgians could become ranked if Villarreal won the European League – which has no direct bearing on their status – and if Celtic were eliminated in the previous round. For example, if Manchester United wins the European League and Celtic falls, then two places will be opened between the ranked players, with Genk taking first place and the team closest to the other: Eindhoven will be if the second round of qualifiers passes or Spartak led by Roy Vitoria, thus avoiding the reunion with fans. Benfica.
At this point, the scenario is still expanding and Benfica will face one of the following seven clubs:
Genk (Belgium, 30,000),
Eindhoven (Netherlands, through the second qualifying round, 29,000),
Spartak Moscow (Russia, 18500),
Sparta Prague (Czech Republic, through the second qualifying round, 17500),
Rapid Vienna (Austria, through the second qualifying round, 17900),
Galatasaray (Turkey, through the second qualifying round, 17,000),
Central Jutland (Denmark, through the second qualifying round, 13500).
As we saw above, three of the six teams that could make it through the second qualifying round (don’t forget Celtic, the top seed and not the potential competitor) will stay on the way.
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