Arsenal faces Fener

By Ojay Matthew

Arsenal have been drawn to face Turkish club Fenerbahce in the Champions League play-offs.

Fenerbahce are awaiting a final ruling from the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) over whether they will be allowed to go into the competition proper this season, having been banned from competing in Europe by UEFA for match-fixing in domestic competition.

They have challenged that ruling and a CAS verdict is due before the group stage draw is made, but home and away matches against Arsenal stand to go ahead before that decision arrives.

UEFA says no decision has yet been made regarding what would happen in the event of Fenerbahce winning the tie and losing their CAS appeal.

Fenerbahce finished second in the Turkish Super League last season, while Arsenal took fourth place in the Barclays Premier League.

Arsenal was beaten by a Turkish club Galatasaray 1-2 recently at their home during the Emirate cup.