UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE THIRD QUALIFYING ROUND, FIRST LEG/Olimpija v Shelbourne, kick-off 7.00pm Thirteen months after a disastrous debut as a manager in European competition, Pat Fenlon is relaxed about the task that faces his side in the Bezigradom Stadium tonight, where they face Olimpija Ljubljana in the first leg of their UEFA Cup qualifying round tie.
Just four games into his tenure at Tolka Park, Fenlon's position did not look all that secure when his side were knocked out of the Champions League by Hibernians of Malta, who were generally perceived as one of the poorest sides an Irish club had come up against in recent times.
Slowly but surely, Fenlon has rebuilt his reputation and with his side enjoying a four-point lead at the top of the eircom League Premier Division, with just one defeat so far this season, he feels he has every reason to be confident ahead of the meeting with the Slovenian outfit.
Fenlon's opposite number, Suad Besirovic, has already surmounted the problem of his lack of the requisite coaching licence by registering himself as a player to allow him to sit in the dug-out.
Besirovic has not only installed his team as favourites - a billing with which Fenlon concurs - but insisted that there is no need for him to do any research into Shelbourne because he does not want to "burden himself with the opposition".
In contrast, Shelbourne's preparations could not have been more professional. Fenlon and scout Dave Henderson watched Olimpija defeat Slovene champions Maribor 6-1 on the opening day of the league season while two other club officials, Andrew Byrne and John Phelan, travelled to Ljubljana three weeks ago to ensure that the team's accommodation would be up to standard.
Moreover, Fenlon has availed of the link-up that exists between his club and Manchester United to lean on the expertise on European football within Old Trafford.
Fenlon had already identified the need to change his side's formation to deal with Olimpija's peculiar 3-6-1 shape and was heartened when United's first team coach Jim Ryan agreed that, in order to combat that, it was best to play with five in midfield with just one striker who, in this case, will be Jason Byrne.
Fenlon said: "I was thinking along those lines anyway but it is reassuring when someone from a club like Manchester United recommends you do it."
SHELBOURNE (probable): Williams; Heary, Rogers, Doherty, Crawley; R Baker, Crawford, Morgan, S Byrne, Cahill; J Byrne.
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