Aoife Mannion and Manchester United set to learn Champions League fate

United qualified for the Champions League qualifiers for the first time with a second-placed WSL finish. Credit: Extratime Team (ETPhotos)

Aoife Mannion and Manchester United will learn their opposition later today as they prepare to make their Champions League bow.

Ireland international Mannion - who missed out on a spot in the summer’s World Cup squad as she ran out of time to recover from a knee ligament injury - was key to United’s second-placed finish in the WSL last season.

But the Solihull native - a childhood schoolmate of one-time Ireland underage international Jack Grealish - is fit again for the new campaign as the Red Devils, who were only founded in 2018, are drawn on the league path at 12pm Irish time (1pm CET) streamed live on UEFA.com.

Among the unseeded side’s potential opponents are last year’s beaten finalists Wolfsburg of Germany, quarter-finalists Paris Saint-Germain of France and Spain’s Real Madrid.

Glasgow City, who added Shamrock Rovers striker Abbie Larkin to their swelling Irish ranks on deadline day, will be in the pot for the champions route.

Former Peamount United defender Claire Walsh, ex-Shelbourne striker Emily Whelan and fellow international Aoife Colville are also on the books at the Scottish club.

Irish interim boss Eileen Gleeson was in charge of Glasgow City for the first half of last season before stepping down to focus on her work as head of women's and girl's football with the FAI.

The seeded outfit have Dutch side Ajax and Serbia’s Spartak Subotica - who eliminated Peamount in the Netherlands two years ago - among their potential opponents.

Champions path:

Seeded



SK Slavia Praha (CZE) 39.233*

FC Rosengård (SWE) 33.399*

SKN St. Pölten Frauen (AUT) 30.050

Glasgow City FC (SCO) 29.100

SL Benfica (POR) 22.800

FC Zürich (SUI) 22.250



AS Roma (ITA) 21.000*

Unseeded

AFC Ajax (NED) 18.400

ŽFK Spartak Subotica (SRB) 16.800

FC Vorskla (UKR) 12.000

Apollon Ladies FC (CYP) 11.800

Valur (ISL) 10.200

AS FC Universitatea Olimpia Cluj (ROU) 9.600

SK Brann (NOR) 7.100

*Entering in round 2

League path:

Seeded

VfL Wolfsburg (GER) 104.333*

Paris Saint-Germain (FRA) 97.166*

Real Madrid CF (ESP) 37.233*

AC Sparta Praha (CZE) 27.233*

BK Häcken FF (SWE) 22.399*

Unseeded

Paris FC (FRA) 18.166

Eintracht Frankfurt (GER) 17.333

FC Twente (NED) 15.400

Manchester United Women (ENG) 12.366*

Vålerenga Fotball (NOR) 12.100

*Entering in round 2

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