Champions League - Who can Arsenal face?

Arsenal's opponents in the Champions League qualifiers will become clear this week when the Third Qualifying Round reaches its conclusion and the draw for the Play-Off Round is held.

We'll have all the latest news from the draw on Friday. First, get your head around how this stage of the competition works - and who Arsenal might face - by reading our guide below.

As Arsenal finished fourth in the Premier League last season, they will enter the 2009/10 Champions League at the newly structured Play-Off Round.

The method of qualification is known as the 'Best-Placed Path'. Below is an explanation of the process.

There are still 12 teams in the running for a place in the Play-Off Round with two Third Qualifying Round ties to be concluded on Wednesday. They are shown in the table below. Don’t worry about the co-efficient rankings yet, we’ll cover that below.

UEFA CO-EFFICIENT RANKINGS

Team	Ranking
1. Arsenal (QUALIFIED)	106.899
2. Lyon (QUALIFIED)	91.033
3. Shakhtar Donetsk (3QR)	74.370
4. Sporting Lisbon (QUALIFIED)	68.292
5. Panathinaikos (QUALIFIED)	56.632
6. VfB Stuttgart (QUALIFIED)	45.339
7. Fiorentina (QUALIFIED)	42.581
8. Atletico Madrid (QUALIFIED)	41.853
9. Celtic (3QR)	40.757
10. Anderlecht (QUALIFIED)	32.065
11. Timisoura (3QR)	25.781
12. Dinamo Moscow (3QR)	9.525

The eight teams with QUALIFIED by their name, are already definitely in the hat for the Play-Off Round. The four teams with 3QR by their name must win their Third Qualifying Round ties to secure their place. The second legs of those ties will be completed on Wednesday night.

So the Play-Off Round consists of:

• -    The five teams already QUALIFIED
• -    The five winners from the Third Qualifying Round

Play-Off Round seeding
All 15 teams involved in the Play-Off Round have a Uefa co-efficent - as shown in the table.

Play-Off Round ties will be determined, in part, by this number. The five teams with the highest Uefa co-efficient are seeded and matched against the five teams with the lowest Uefa co-efficient. This draw takes place on August, 7.

From the above co-efficient rankings, we know Arsenal definitely cannot face Olympique Lyon, Shakhtar Donetsk, Sporting Lisbon or Panathinaikos in the ‘Play Off Round’. (They are the five teams with the highest co-efficient).

But Arsenal could face one of the following: Stuttgart, Fiorentina, Atletico Madrid, Celtic, Anderlecht, Timisoura, Dinamo Moscow.

When the Third Qualifying Round is completed, Arsenal.com will bring you a definitive list of the five teams who Arsenal could face in the Play-Off Round.

Please Note: Alongside this 'Best Placed Path' there is a ‘Champions Path’ which is a more traditional method of qualification. Here, the champions of lower-ranked countries compete for a place in the Champions League proper.

But, teams from this ‘Champions Path’ and the ‘Best Placed Path’ CANNOT meet in qualifying – the two paths do not cross.

[Wednesday, August 05, 2009]

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