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Town Draw Czechs - Ipswich Town News

Town have drawn Czech side Slovan Liberec in the second round of the UEFA Cup, with the first leg at Portman Road. The first leg will be played on October 31st and the second on November 14th.

The Czech city of Liberec is around 60 miles to the north-east of Prague in
Northern Bohemia. Slovan qualified for the second round of the UEFA Cup by beating Georgian side Dinamo Tiblisi 4-2 on aggregate.

Prior to that they were close to entering the Champions' League proper when they were defeated by AC Milan on the away goals rule after drawing 2-2, goals from Miroslav Slepicka and David Langer winning the Czech leg 2-1. However Italian sides were at the time still in pre-season so this may have had an effect on their performance.

Liberec play at the U Nisy in Liberec which holds 9,090 fans. They were champions of the Czech Republic last season and are currently third in their league after nine games having won five, drawn two and lost one.

Their leading scorers so far this season are midfielder Martin Zboncák with four and striker Lubomír Blaha with three.

The city itself has a population of 100,000 and is in a valley between the Luzice and Jizera mountains. It is a city with a rich tradition which is visible in its architecture.

The best approach, according to Czech posters on the TWTD Message Board, is to stay in Prague and make the hour's trip to Liberec by car. No visas are required for a visit to the Czech Republic for EU citizens.

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