Debutants shine in Champions League qualifiers

Thu, Jul 24 05:46 AM

By Zoran Milosavljevic

BELGRADE (Reuters) - Drogheda United, Modrica and Domzale enjoyed winning Champions League debuts after dismissing their first qualifying round opponents on Wednesday.

They will be joined in the next stage of Europe's premier club competition by six other teams who secured their passage on Wednesday and five who advanced on Tuesday.

Irish champions Drogheda will face Dynamo Kiev after defender Graham Gartland gave them a 1-0 win at Levadia Tallinn to complete a 3-1 aggregate win over the Estonian champions.

Although they have only a slim chance of reaching the third and final qualifying round, Drogheda will want to avoid a heavy defeat after their 14-0 aggregate UEFA Cup first-round drubbing against Tottenham Hotspur on their European debut in 1983.

Bosnian title holders Modrica scored twice in the last two minutes in a 2-1 home win over Dinamo Tirana that gave them a 4-1 aggregate win against the Albanians.

Their reward is a second-round encounter with Danish side Aalborg while Slovenia's Domzale take on Croatian rivals Dinamo Zagreb after a 2-0 home win over Luxembourg's Dudelange earned them a 3-0 aggregate victory.

Dinamo Zagreb, looking for their first Champions League group stage appearance in eight years, registered a 3-1 overall win against Northern Ireland's Linfield after being held to a 1-1 home draw by the Belfast part-timers.

Sweden's IFK Gothenburg thrashed Murata 9-0 on aggregate after midfielder Niklas Barkroth scored twice in a 4-0 home rout of the San Marino side to set up a second-round clash with Swiss champions Basel.

The first legs of the second qualifying round are next Tuesday and Wednesday with the return legs on Aug. 5 and 6.

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