Manchester United drawn against Brugge in play-off round

Manchester United must get past Club Brugge to reach the group stages of the Champions League.

Manchester United will face Club Brugge
Manchester United will face Club Brugge

United drew the Belgian side in the play-off round, with the first leg taking place at Old Trafford on August 18 or 19. The second leg will be played on August 25 or 26.

Club Brugge, who finished second in the Belgian league last season, beat Greek side Panathinaikos 4-2 on aggregate in the third qualifying round but it will be seen as a decent draw for Louis van Gaal's side, who could have been pitted against Lazio, Monaco or CSKA Moscow.

United have never played Club Brugge but they have a history of meeting Belgian opposition in Europe, including a record 10-0 victory over Anderlecht in the 1956-57 European Cup.

Celtic were drawn against Swedish champions Malmo in the play-off round, with the first leg taking place at Parkhead.

The Scottish champions avoided potential nightmare trips to Kazakhstan or Albania after beating Qarabag, of Azerbaijan, in the third qualifying round.

But Malmo, European Cup finalists in 1979, have plenty of pedigree and have won the Swedish title in the last two seasons.

Malmo overturned a 2-0 deficit from their away leg with Red Bull Salzburg to win 3-2 on aggregate and have former Celtic player Jo Inge Berget in their ranks.

 

Play-off round draw

Astana v Apoel Nicosia 
Skenderbeu v Dinamo Zagreb 
Celtic v Malmo FF 
Basel v Maccabi Tel-Aviv 
BATE v Partizan Belgrade 
Lazio v Bayer Leverkusen 
Manchester United v Club Brugge 
Sporting Lisbon v CSKA Moscow 
Rapid Vienna v Shakhtar Donetsk 
Valencia v Monaco

  • First legs to be played on August 18/19; second legs on August 25/26.