UEFA Champions League Playoffs: 1st Leg: TodayCSKA Moscow vs Fenerbache Sk 17:55 SS3M’gladbach vs Dynamo Kyiv 20:40 SS3Lille vs Copenhagen 20:40 SS5Basel vs CFR Cluj 20:45Helsingborg vs CelticBERLIN – Borussia Monchengladbach aim to return to Europe’s biggest football stage for the first time in 34 years when they take on Dynamo Kiev in the Champions League play-offs.The two-legged tie on Tuesday and August 29 starts with a home game for the German side which last played in the elite event in the 1977-78 season, going out in the semifinals against Liverpool who also beat them in the 1977 final.Ten play-off ties are scheduled in total to complete the 32-strong group stage field for which the draw will be made on August 30. They include Spartak Moscow v Fenerbahce, Braga v Udinese and Malaga v Panathinaikos.England are not represented this time around because Chelsea are directly qualified as title holders and the fourth-place Premier League finisher misses out on the playoffs as a result.Moenchengladbach won five Bundesliga titles, one German cup and two Uefa Cups during their heydays in the 1970s.They finished a surprise fourth in the past Bundesliga season and hope for a place in the lucrative group stage although they lost key players Marco Reus and Dante to champions Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich, respectively.“It will be a difficult game. Kiev have a strong team. But we know, from the past season as well, that we can beat any team. It will be difficult for Kiev as well,” midfielder Havard Nordveidt said.
