Arsenal come to Zagreb

Arsenal face a tough looking clash in their bid to reach the UEFA Champions League group stages as they are almost certain to face Croatian outfit Dinamo Zagreb in their third qualifying round game, while Liverpool and Hearts will be pleased with their draws after being handed ties with Maccabi Haifa and AEK Athens respectively.

Zagreb have a 4-1 advantage over Lithuanian's Ekranas in their second round clash, so they look like being Arsenal's opponents. The Gunners will, though, be happy that they have their away leg first.

2005 champions Liverpool have drawn Maccabi, but they are unlikely to face a trip to Israel because of the current situation there meaning an away clash in Cyprus is likely to follow their first leg at Anfield.

Hearts are still to overcome their Bosnian opponents Siroki, but with a 3-0 lead they will be confident they can book their place against AEK - and given who they could have met, the Edinburgh side have a real chance of making the Champions League group stages.

Irish champions Cork have been handed a dream tie if they can overcome Crvena Zvezda - as they have been draw with Italian giants Milan.

Of the rest Valencia will be happy to face Zurich or Salzburg, likewise Ajax who will face Scandinavian opposition in the shape of Copenhagen or My-Pa.

Hamburg v Osasuna looks to be the tie of the round, with the Spaniards unseeded for the draw.

Champions League Third Draw in full:
FC Sheriff/Spartak Moscow v Slovan Liberec
Shakhtar Donetsk v Hafnarfjordur/Legia Warsaw
FC Zurich/Salzburg v Valencia
Levski Sofia/Sioni v Chievo Verona
Hearts/Siroki Brijeg v AEK Athens
CSKA Moscow v Djurgardens/Ruzomborek
Milan v Cork City/Crvena Zvezda
Galatasaray v Mlada Boleslav/Valerenga
Standard Liege v Gorica/Steaua Bucharest
Austria Vienna v Benfica
Ekranas/Dinamo Zagreb v Arsenal
Copenhagen/My-Pa v Ajax
Hamburg v Osasuna
Metalurgs/Dynamo Kiev v Fenerbahce/Torshavn
Liverpool v Maccabi Haifa
Lille v Debrecen/Rabotnicki


First legs will be played on August 8/9 and second legs on August 22/23.