Liverpool face July start to Europa League campaign
Liverpool will face an extended season next term with their Europa League campaign kicking off on July 29, with a return leg seven days later, unless they manage to overtake Aston Villa on the final day of the season.
England have three representatives in the competition, but only two of those enter in the final qualifying round. The third entrant, usually the winner of the Carling Cup which for the second season in a row will pass down to seventh place in the Premier League, must enter in an earlier round.
Fulham, who will next week face Atletico Madrid in their first ever European final, began their campaign this term with an away trip to Lithuanian side FK Vetra on July 30. The Cottagers won both legs 3-0 to comfortably pass into the final Play-off Round where they overcame Russian minnows FK Amkar Perm.
Unlike with Champions League rules, Fulham winning the Europa League will not impact on the seventh placed team entering the competition.
However, there is the added complication of the World Cup this summer. While Fulham entered early after a free close season break, many Liverpool players will be on duty in South Africa with the final taking place just 18 days before their season would officially begin.
Players such as Pepe Reina, Daniel Agger, Glen Johnson, Sotirios Kyrgiakos, Martin Skrtel, Ryan Babel, Steven Gerrard, Javier Mascherano, Dirk Kuyt and Fernando Torres will all be present at the finals.
Liverpool are also due to travel to Germany to play Borussia Monchengladbach on Saturday, July 31 - a match which would surely be in doubt - as part of the German side's 110th anniversary celebrations. At present that is the pre-season only fixture officially announced.
Entering the competition at such an early stage would also place question marks over Liverpool's availability for overseas pre-season exhibition competitions.
The Premier League season does not kick off until August 14 in 2010-11, meaning whichever side finishes seventh will play their first competitive game over two weeks earlier than expected. The final qualifying round is then set for August 19 and 26.
Liverpool could still save themselves from that fate, and put Aston Villa into that same unenviable position. They must win away at Hull City and hope Villa fail to win at home to Blackburn Rovers. Liverpool would go sixth on goal difference with a Villa draw.
It would be much, much worse for any English team which wins a possible place in the competition via the Fair Play League.
England were in the top three in the last Fair Play table released by UEFA. A final table is expected to be unveiled later this week which would confirm an additional place for an English team.
Fulham are believed to be the best-placed team not guaranteed European football, so if they lose in Hamburg they would be the Premier League's representative. If they win the Europa League, Fulham would go direct to the Group Stage as holders and the Fair Play place would pass to Burnley.
However, Fair Play winners enter the Europa League at the very start - on July 1. Liverpool had to do this in the 2005-06 Champions League season when they were handed a concessional place as holders, after finishing fifth in the Premier League.
The Fair Play Award could be seen as a poisioned chalice, given Europa League qualifying begins in the middle of the World Cup.
http://m.espn.go.com/soccer/story?storyId=781965&leagueTag=UEFA.EUROPA&lang=ENIs it a good or bad thing? Maybe no pre-season friendlies at all.
Edit: redkennyConfirmation:
Europa League qualification details
11th May 2010 - Latest News
Liverpool can today confirm that their bid to qualify for next season's Europa League Group Stage will begin on Thursday July 29, 2010.
The Reds' seventh place finish means they will enter the competition at the 3rd Qualifying Round with the second leg to be played on Thursday, August 5.
Should Rafael Benitez's men progress they will then face a two-legged Play-Off (August 19 & 26) to see if they can qualify for the Group Stage.
The draw for the 3rd Qualifying Round will take place at UEFA's Headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland on Friday, July 16, at 13.30 (Local Time).
www.liverpoolfc.tv