Motherwell's Long Road In Europe

Qualifying for Europe is a bonus for any club and a boost for fans and players alike. That's always been the accepted wisdom but for everyone connected to Motherwell that assumption is going to be tested to the limit this season.

That is a season which begins on 2nd July- before the Wimbledon tennis tournment is even concluded. It's not been so much a case of pre-season training as continuous training for the squad.

Motherwell are beneficiaries of the changes to the UEFA and Intertoto Cups that sees them combined as the Europa League. It means Scotland can have four representatives at this level, as well as the Old Firm in the Champions League.

For Aberdeen and Hearts that means a later entry to the four rounds that lead to the revamped group stage.But for the Well it means a potential eight matches in this competition before the end of August (and a possible six for Falkirk).

Other British Isles sides are involved at the First Qualifying round but unlike Motherwell, the likes of The New Saints and Linfield won't be expected to get through to the group stages.

Motherwell have dropped lucky that their first encounter is with Welsh side Llanelli but if they get through thar two leg affair they have a trip to Albania as early as 16th July. If the Well get past KS Flamurtari they can expect the opposition to get tougher.

These matches might mean the players hit the ground running in the SPL but the team might feel the effects in February/March - and if they negotiate the eight games then they will have four more in the group at least.

In the Premier League several teams have demonstated a drop in league performance after becoming involved in Europe and with more Scottish sides involved- nearly half of the SPL- non-qualifiers like Dundee United and Hibernian might get a significant advantage.