Liverpool handed kind Europa League fixture schedule

Five of Liverpool FC's six UEFA Europa League mid-week clashes fall before home Premier League games, after the fixtures were revealed a few hours after the group stage draw paired them with Rubin Kazan, Bordeaux and FC Sion.

Liverpool handed kind Europa League fixture schedule
charlie-malam
By Charlie Malam

After Liverpool welcomed a charitable Europa League group stage draw on Friday, the recently released fixture schedule handed them a trip away to Bordeaux in their first game.

Group B handed them an arduous journey to Rubin Kazan alongside trips to Switzerland to face FC Sion and France to play Bordeaux - who took defender Tiago Ilori on loan last term.

The Ligue 1 side, whom the Reds beat 1-0 away from home and 3-0 at Anfield back in the group stages of the 2006-07 Champions League - play host to Brendan Rodgers' charges in the opening round of fixtures on Thursday 17 September.

That comes a few days after a clash at rivals Manchester United and falls prior to Liverpool's home game versus Norwich City, before a League Cup game against Carlisle United brings to an end a spell of four games in 11 days.

After the journey to the Noveau Stade de Bordeaux, Liverpool next face FC Sion in Europe - hosting the Swiss Super League side at Anfield on Thursday 1 October, in between a home game against Aston Villa and the Merseyside Derby against Everton at Goodison Park.

Liverpool have met the Swiss side once before, beating them 2-1 in Sion and coming out on top in an enthralling 6-3 affair in the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup second leg at home in 1996-97.

The Reds face a double-header against new opponents Rubin Kazan, with the Russian side's visit to Merseyside sandwiched between a trip to Tottenham Hotspur and Southampton at home on Thursday 22 October.

Rodgers and co. then make the extensive trek to Russia in matchday four, which falls on Thursday 5 October, after an encounter with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge and before Liverpool welcome Alan Pardew's Crystal Palace to L4. 

After an international break, Liverpool face a testing trip to Manchester City before their penultimate Europa League group game sees them entertain Bordeaux at Anfield, days before a home clash against Swansea City.

Their final tie is a trip to FC Sion, by which time the Reds will be hoping to have sealed qualification to the knockout rounds, which separates leagues games at Newcastle United and at home to West Bromwich Albion.

In total, the Reds will travel just shy of 6,650 miles for their group stage campaign, over half of which is the journey to Kazan, whilst Tottenham Hotspur - the only other remaining English side in the competition - travel slightly less at around 6,620 miles.

Europa League fixture list in full (incl. league games):

September

12th: Manchester United (A)
17th: Bordeaux (A) - Europa League matchday one
20th: Norwich City (H)
23rd: Carlisle United (H) - Capital One Cup third round 
26th: Aston Villa (H)

October

1st: FC Sion (H) - Europa League matchday two
4th: Everton (A)
17th: Tottenham Hotspur (A)
22nd: Rubin Kazan (H) - Europa League matchday three
25th: Southampton (H)
31st: Chelsea (A)

November

5th: Rubin Kazan (A) - Europa League matchday four
8th: Crystal Palace (H)
21st: Manchester City (A)
26th: Bordeaux (H) - Europa League matchday five
29th: Swansea City (H)

December

5th: Newcastle United (A)
10th: FC Sion (A) - Europa League matchday six
12th: West Bromwich Albion (H)*
19th: Watford (A)
26th: Leicester City (H)
28th: Sunderland (A)

(Fixtures subject to change at request of televison companies or the police)

*  - almost certain to change to Sunday 13th December

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About the author
Charlie Malam
Digital Sports Writer at the Daily Express. First-class Staffordshire University Sports Journalism graduate. Formerly VAVEL UK's Liverpool FC editor and Deputy Editor-in-Chief. Contributor since June 2014.