As we all know, our team has knocked out Bosnian side Borac Banja Luka to qualify for the UEFA Europa League, where we were drawn in Monaco on 30 August from the second tier based on the UEFA rankings of the participants.

Under the new arrangements, each team that qualifies for the main competition will face eight opponents in the so-called league stage (two from each of the four groups), four of whom will play at home and four away. The draw sees the home side host English side Tottenham, Dutch side AZ Alkmaar, French side Nice and Swedish side Malmö, while away games are played against German side Frankfurt, Greek side PAOK, Ukrainian side Dinamo Kiev and Belgian side Anderlecht.

One-leg main draw instead of group stage

In the league stage, the teams finishing in the top eight of the 36-team single-group main draw will go straight through to the last eight. Teams finishing between 9th and 24th will face a play-off round for a place in the last 16. For the teams finishing between 25th and 36th, international cup competition will end, as from this season there will be no crossover between the various international cups, with the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League and UEFA Conference League all becoming closed from the main competition onwards, with only the qualifying rounds in one series allowing teams to continue in another.

In the knockout stage, the usual back-and-forth matches will be played, with the final still being decided in a single match.

Under the new system, which will come into force from the 2024/25 season, every match, every point, every goal scored and every position will have a major impact. Fans will be treated to a series of closely-matched, decisive matches from the very first day of play.