Bournemouth faces Sociedad in Europa League, Man City meets Norwich in League Cup

Bournemouth kicks off its first European campaign at Spanish side Real Sociedad in the Europa League on Thursday.

Key points

• Another English club, Crystal Palace, opens its European campaign against Polish champion Lech Poznań after winning the third-tier Conference League last season.
• In other games, Italian giant Juventus faces Dutch side Nijmegen, Besiktas hosts Marseille and Celtic plays Ferencváros in Glasgow.
• "We need to stay humble and concentrate on each game, " Bournemouth captain Adam Smith remarked.
• Real Sociedad returns to Europe after a one-year absence.

Bournemouth enjoyed a record season to finish sixth in the Premier League and Marco Rose's side hopes its opening European game in San Sebastian is a chance to put behind a slow and winless start to this campaign.

"We need to stay humble and concentrate on each game, " Bournemouth captain Adam Smith remarked. "But definitely our aim is to try to get as far as possible."

Real Sociedad returns to Europe after a one-year absence. It qualified for the competition by claiming the Spanish Cup for the fourth time.

In short, bournemouth faces Sociedad in Europa League, Man City meets Norwich in League is the central thread here, and readers can expect follow-up reporting as the picture becomes clearer.