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Champions League preview: Ten play-off round first-leg ties, including Napoli v Athletic Bilbao

Image: Athletic Bilbao: Standing in Napoli's way

Rafael Benitez has warned Napoli ahead of their Champions League play-off against Athletic Bilbao.

When the Serie A club were drawn against the Primera Division giants from the Basque Country, both sets of supporters made sure to snap up every ticket available for the two-legged showdown.

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The Champions League returns with Napoli playing Athletic Bilbao live on Sky Sports 5 HD

Benitez's Napoli are quickly improving on the European stage and were unlucky to miss out on a place in the last 16 of the Champions League last season, while Bilbao were Europa League final runners-up in 2012.

The Azzurri boss has therefore warned his men against underestimating Tuesday night's visitors to Naples.

"We will face a great team and the second leg will be in an incredible (San Mames) stadium," Benitez told Marca.

"The (San Mames) crowd is like their 12th man.

Live UEFA Champions League

"Athletic's strongest weapon is the group, with players who have been together for many years and have the support of a city that never loses its passion.

"I respect Athletic Bilbao a great deal, but I trust my Napoli side.

"We have players who came in late from World Cup duty, like (Argentinian striker) Gonzalo Higuain, and new players that have yet to adapt to the team but I've seen positive signs.

"My team arrives ready for this tie. We have the right mentality and we too can count on great passion."

Champions League Goals

Meanwhile, over in Turkey, Arsenal will attempt to reach the group stages for the 17th consecutive season as they go up against Slaven Bilic's Besiktas.

Since reaching the final in 2002, Bayer Leverkusen have struggled to reach the later rounds of the Champions League. They can start well this time round by overcoming FC Copenhagen, their first-leg hosts in Denmark.

Red Bull Salzburg hotshot Jonathan Soriano will be eager to show what he can do at a higher level after taking the Europa League by storm last season but Swedish champions Malmo are standing in his way.

Romania's Steaua Bucharest won the continent's greatest club prize in 1986 and now host Ludogorets of Bulgaria.

Live UEFA Champions League

On Wednesday night, Celtic will look to make the most of their European reprieve by getting the better of Slovenian champions Maribor at Ljudski vrt.

The Hoops were beaten 6-1 by Legia Warsaw in the third round of qualifying but, after the Polish club were found to have fielded an ineligible player towards the end of the second-leg match, Celtic were handed a 3-0 walkover win.

Legia's appeal to UEFA failed and they will take part in the Europa League play-off round unless an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport is successful.

Celtic must now do the business on the pitch in Maribor to prove they deserve their second chance.

The showdown at Stade Pierre-Mauroy looks to be a mouthwatering prospect as Ligue 1 outfit Lille entertain Porto.

Champions League Goals

Both recent domestic champions finished third in their respective leagues last season and the Portuguese club are especially keen to make amends by enjoying success in the competition they won only 10 years ago.

Their former head coach, Andre Villas-Boas, is hoping to taste Champions League football once again as he takes Zenit St Petersburg to Standard Liege, who were European Cup semi-finalists back in 1962.

Elsewhere, Slovakian champions Slovan Bratislava welcome their Belarusian counterparts BATE Borisov and Danish Superliga winners AaB play host to Cypriot First Division title holders APOEL FC.

Watch Napoli v Athletic Bilbao and Celtic v Maribor in Champions League qualifying on Tuesday and Wednesday respectively on Sky Sports 5 HD, with highlights programmes of all the ties at 10pm on both nights.

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