Fenerbahçe’s European ambitions are about to face their hardest check but.
With a second-place end within the 2024-25 Trendyol Süper Lig, the Yellow Canaries have secured a spot within the 2025-26 UEFA Champions League Third Qualifying Round.
The draw, set for July 21 at UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland, may throw them into the lion’s den of elite European competitors.
The Turkish giants should survive two qualifying rounds – third qualifying and playoffs – to earn their place within the 36-team Champions League league part.
Under Jose Mourinho, who took the reins in June 2024, Fenerbahçe will know their opponent as soon as the draw pairs them with one among 5 potential groups: Benfica, Club Brugge, Feyenoord, or the winner of Rangers vs. Panathinaikos.
Unseeded because of a UEFA coefficient of 47.250, Fenerbahçe are bracing for a difficult matchup.
Benfica loom largest, with a coefficient of 87.750, adopted carefully by Club Brugge and Feyenoord, every boasting deep European pedigree and tactical stability.
Rangers, in the event that they overcome Panathinaikos, provide a storyline soaked in current historical past after eliminating Fenerbahçe on penalties in final season’s Europa League Round of 16. Panathinaikos, with the weakest coefficient among the many pool, can be probably the most favorable draw.
The Third Qualifying Round legs are scheduled for August 5-6 and 12-13, with the playoff Round following shortly after on Aug. 19-20 and 26-27.
Fenerbahçe’s fortress, Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium, will likely be essential within the membership’s effort to push previous their continental challengers.
Benfica, with their Estádio da Luz blazing in pink and white, deliver probably the most daunting resume – a quarterfinal end in 2022-23 and 12 factors within the 2024-25 league part.
Club Brugge are not any pushovers both, identified for toppling greater names and ending twenty second in final 12 months’s Champions League league stage.
Feyenoord’s high-press depth and prolific striker Santiago Gimenez add a special form of firepower, whereas Rangers’ bodily edge and familiarity with Mourinho’s ways may tip the dimensions in both route.
Panathinaikos, although much less embellished not too long ago, provide a well-drilled and motivated squad.
For Mourinho, the mission is evident: navigate the qualifying gauntlet and return Fenerbahçe to Europe’s grandest stage, one thing they haven’t achieved since reaching the quarterfinals in 2008.
Key signings like Levent Mercan and the extension of Mert Hakan Yandaş sign intent, whereas a preseason camp in Austria and a pleasant in opposition to Bayern Munich purpose to fine-tune the squad.
All this unfolds amid a turbulent backdrop in Turkish soccer. Fenerbahçe not too long ago filed a proper grievance with the TFF over alleged bias throughout the disciplinary board.
Their archrivals are simply as busy: Beşiktaş are set for a Europa League showdown with Shakhtar Donetsk or Ilves Tampere.
The stakes are excessive and the margin for error is skinny. The end result of the July 21 draw and the Rangers-Panathinaikos qualifier shortly after will outline the subsequent chapter in Fenerbahçe’s European story.
Source: www.dailysabah.com