NYON (Switzerland), July 20: Turkish club Fenerbahce will return to the Champions League against FC Vaslui of Romania in the third qualifying round after serving a one-year exile during a match-fixing investigation after the draw was made at UEFA headquarters on Friday.
Former European champions Celtic will face either Finnish outfit HJK Helsinki or KR Reykjavik of Iceland while their Scottish Premier League rivals Motherwell, who got their place when Scottish league runners-up Rangers were excluded for financial problems, have a tough task ahead of them after being pitted against group stage regulars Panathinaikos.
Another former champions Feyenoord, the 1970 winners, travel first to three-times semi-finalists Dynamo Kiev while FC Copenhagen will host Club Bruges first.
If Irish side Shamrock Rovers come through their second qualifying round tie against Lithuania's Ekranas their reward will be a date with Belgian heayweights Anderlecht.
Rovers created history when becoming the first Irish club to compete in the group stages of a major European competition when qualifying for the 2011/2012 Europa League.
Fenerbahce were barred from the Champions League last season over a domestic match-fixing scandal but escaped demotion to a lower league after the Turkish federation decided in May to take action against individuals and not the club.
Earlier this month, Fenerbahce chairman Aziz Yildirim was sentenced to more than six years in jail, although he was released pending an appeal. Other Fenerbahce executives were also convicted, as were a former coach and executive from rival Istanbul club Besiktas.
Fenerbahce finished second behind Galatasary in Turkey last season to clinch a place in the Champions League qualifiers.
The Champions League third qualifying round first legs are scheduled to be played on July 31/August 2 with the return legs on August 7 and 8.
Those teams who make it through this stage will progress to the play-offs with a chance of booking their tickets to the lucrative Champions League group stages while the losers will go in to the Europa League play-offs.
Meanwhile, Inter Milan will make their Europa League debut with a home leg first against Hajduk Split of Croatia or Skonto of Latvia in the third qualifying round. Inter dropped into UEFA's second-tier competition this season after seven straight years in the Champions League, which they won in 2010.
European heavyweights Liverpool, the 2005 Champions League winners, also featured in Friday's draw and will face either Macedonia minnows Renova or Gomel from Belarus.
Renova, who finished fourth in their domestic league, and Gomel who came in third, meet later this month to determine which side takes on the new Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers' multiple continental champions.
Athletic Bilbao, runners-up last season, are at home first against Croatia's Slaven Koprivnica or Northern Ireland's Portadown while former European champions Marseille will play either Scottish side St Johnstone or Eskisehirspor from Turkey.
The first legs are scheduled for August 2 with the second legs a week later with the winners advancing to a playoff round before the group stage.
Champions League third qualifying round draw:
League Route: Fenerbahce (Turkey) v FC Vaslui (Romania), Motherwell (Scotland) v Panathinaikos (Greece), FC Copenhagen (Denmark) v Club Bruges (Belgium), Dynamo Kiev (Ukraine) vs. Feyenoord (Netherlands).
Champions Route: Maribor (Slovenia)/Zeljeznicar (Bosnia) v F91 Dudelange (Luxemburg)/FC Salzburg (Austria), BATE Borisov (Belarus)/FK Vardar (Macedonia) v KS Skenderbeu (Albania)/Debrecen (Hungary), CFR Cluj (Romania) v Slovan Liberec (Czech Republic)/ Shakhter Karagandy (Kazakhstan), Anderlecht (Belgium) v Shamrock Rovers (Ireland)/FK Ekranas (Lithuania), Buducnost Podgorica (Montenegro)/Slask Wroclaw (Poland) v The New Saints (Wales)/Helsingsborgs IF (Sweden), Ulisses FC (Armenia)/FC Sheriff (Moldova) v Ludogorets(Bulgaria)/Dinamo Zagreb (Croatia), Celtic (Scotland) v HJK Helsinki (Finland)/KR Reykjavk (Iceland), Molde (Norway)/Ventspils (Latvia) v Flora Tallinn (Estonia)/FC Basel (Switzerland), MSK Zilina (Slovakia)/Hapoel Kiryat Shmona (Israel) v Neftci PFK (Azerbaijan)/FC Zestafoni (Georgia), AEL Limassol (Cyprus)/Linfield (Northern Ireland) v Valletta FC (Malta)/Partizan (Serbia).—Agencies