The preliminary and first qualifying round draws for the 2018/19 UEFA Champions League were made today with The New Saints handed a difficult tie against Macedonian champions KF Shkëndija.

KF Shkëndija should prove tricky opponents having reached the play-off round of the Europa League in their previous two seasons, and were last year eliminated by AC Milan.

The New Saints will play the first leg away on July 10/11 before returning to Park Hall a week later.

Should Saints progress, they would face Torpedo Kutaisi (Georgia) or Sheriff (Moldova) in the first qualifying round.

Preparations are already well underway for the Welsh side with club holding a week-long training camp in Portugal and making a number of additions to their squad.

Young Swansea City defender Ben Cabango and former Liverpool youngster Kane Lewis are amongst those to be recruited by Saints manager Scott Ruscoe, who now turns his attentions to preparing for the Macedonian side.

Speaking to the club’s official website, Ruscoe said: “It’s the second or third toughest draw we could’ve had.

“They’ve finished their season as well, so we’ll be doing our homework looking at their strengths and weaknesses and finding out as much as we can.

“We are two and half weeks in [to our pre-season] and we are trying to get up to speed. We’re trying to get our players as many minutes as possible.”

Bala Town’s Europa League preparations began on Monday evening with a 3-2 friendly win over fellow European qualifiers Cefn Druids at The Rock.

The two sides begin their respective Europa League campaigns next week as they enter the competitions’ preliminary round.

Cefn Druids host FK Trakai (Lithuania) at Park Hall whilst Bala Town visit Tre Fiori (San Marino).

Connah’s Quay will have to wait until tomorrow to find out who they will draw in the Europa League first qualifying round.

Featured image courtesy of TNS FC