Shakhtar face Sivasspor test

FC Shakhtar Donetsk, the 2009 UEFA Cup winners, will meet Sivasspor in the UEFA Europa League play-off round following the draw in Nyon on Friday.

Turkey trip
Mircea Lucescu's side come into the competition after losing their UEFA Champions League third qualifying round tie to FC Timişoara, and now face a return to Turkey, the scene of their UEFA Cup triumph in Istanbul in May. Werder Bremen, their final opponents at the Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium, take on FK Aktobe of Kazakhstan.

Roma impress
Sivasspor are one of four Turkish teams in the play-offs, with 2000 UEFA Cup winners Galatasaray SK meeting Estonia's FC Levadia Tallinn while their Istanbul rivals Fenerbahçe SK face Swiss side FC Sion and Trabzonspor play Toulouse FC. AS Roma, who overcame KAA Gent 10-2 in the third qualifying round, meet Slovakia's MFK Košice while city rivals S.S. Lazio take on IF Elfsborg.

Destination Hamburg
In other ties, 2008 UEFA Cup winners FC Zenit St. Petersburg play Portugal's CD Nacional, Valencia CF, the 2004 UEFA Cup victors, meet Stabæk IF of Norway and Everton FC, who finished fifth in the Premier League last season as well as reaching the FA Cup final, face Czech side SK Sigma Olomouc. The final will be held on 12 May 2010 at the Arena Hamburg, home of Hamburger SV who have been drawn against French Cup winners EA Guingamp. The 38 play-off winners will be joined by the ten losing teams from the UEFA Champions League play-off round to make up the 48 clubs that will contest the UEFA Europa League group stage which begins on 17 September. The draw for the group stage takes place in Monaco on Friday 28 August.

Shakhtar exception
The ties are to be played over two legs on 20 and 27 August 2009, but as Shakhtar, winners of the 2008/09 UEFA Cup, are due to play the UEFA Super Cup match in Monaco on 28 August against FC Barcelona, UEFA has decided the second leg of their play-off against Sivasspor will take place on Tuesday 25 August (before 18.00CET).