Tough path to the Champions League group stage for AEK

The European cup qualifying rounds’ draws were smooth enough for most Greek teams on Monday, though not for Greek champion AEK.

The Yellows will join the Champions League from the third qualifying round facing the winner of the tie between Celtic and Rosenborg. The games will be played on August 7 or 8 in Scotland or Norway, and the return is in Athens on August 14.

PAOK is facing Basel in the second qualifying round of the Champions League on Tuesday, and if it goes through after the home-and-away ties this and next week it will face Spartak Moscow, with the first game at home and the return in Russia.

However if PAOK does not go past the Swiss powerhouse, it will drop to the Europa League’s third qualifying round and face the winner of the tie between Romanian club Viitorul and Dutch side Vitesse. The first match will be away.

Olympiakos is already into the third qualifying round of the Europa League where it will play another Swiss team, Luzern. The first leg is scheduled for Piraeus.

Asteras Tripolis is facing the might of Hibernian in Scotland this Thursday and at home next week, but if it goes through it will have a slightly easier task against the winner of the tie between Norway’s Molde and Albania’s Laci, starting away from home.

Atromitos is also involved in the second qualifying round, facing Dinamo Brest in Belarus on Thursday and then at Peristeri next week. In case it goes past the team that has hired Diego Maradona as its president, it will meet the winner of the tie between Zeljeznicar Sarajevo and Apollon Limassol, with the first match in Greece.

The third-qualifying-round ties of the Europa League are scheduled for August 9 and 16.