Meet the Champions League debutants – together with ex-non league boss who ended dominant period
The Champions League takes another step to swinging back into action on Thursday – with the league phase draw taking place in Nyon, Switzerland.
And learning their opponents for the first time will be four debutants: LASK, Como 1907, Viking and Sabah FK. Austrian side LASK, who have been regulars in Europe’s second and third tier competitions, have their first shot at Champions League football thanks to a stunning comeback.
After losing their first leg with Celtic 4-0 in the play-off round, LASK welcomed Celtic to Raiffeisen Arena and stunned the former winners with a 5-1 drubbing, securing their spot in the league phase.
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Meanwhile, over in Italy, Como’s epic rise has continued on the banks of one of Europe’s most picturesque holidaying destinations.
Cesc Fabregas’ side made history on the final day of the Serie A season, when they secured 4-1 victory over 10-man Cremonese, which, combined with AC Milan’s 2-1 defeat to Cagliari, saw them qualify for a spot at Europe’s top table.
“It’s up there with all my achievements for how it was done and with whom we did it, because we did it with very young players, almost all of them are under 23 years old. That’s amazing,” said former Arsenal, Chelsea and Barcelona midfielder Fabregas.
In Norway, Viking stunned fans when they pipped Bodo/Glimt – who were the story of the Champions League last season – to the Eliteserien title. And they’re now ready to take their exploits into Europe.
Hailing from Stavanger, Norway’s third largest city, Viking have some European pedigree – they famously knocked Chelsea out of the UEFA Cup during the 2002/03 season.
They last graced European football over 20 years ago, and after a period of financial instability and relegation, they have found themselves back in the big time.
The biggest surprise might just be Azerbaijani side Sabah FK – who ended Qarabag FK’s era of dominance to qualify for the Champions League.
Even more astonishingly, they were only founded in 2017. Their manager, Valdas Dambrauska, won Lithuania’s version of Who Wants to be a Millionaire – and spent his winnings on his dream of becoming a football manager.
Dambrauska studied Sports Science and Coaching at London Metropolitan University, he opened doors at several youth academies, including Manchester United, Brentford, and Fulham. He even ripped up the history books at ninth tier Kingsbury London Tigers before returning to Lithuania – which eventually led him to Sabah.
