BANGOR City’s UEFA Europa League preparations begin with a visit to Manchester City’s Etihad Campus this week to participate in Jamie Vardy’s V9 Academy. With the draw for the UEFA Europa League in Nyon, Switzerland, scheduled for Monday, 19 June, the Citizens’ pre-season begins earlier than usual with their first training session taking place on Wednesday. New manager Kevin Nicholson will then have the opportunity to see his charges in action when they take on one of Vardy’s teams on Friday, June 9. Nicholson will have a full squad at his disposal with the exception of absentees Danny Gosset and Laurence Wilson who are both unavailable, while summer signing Steve Hewitt will have the opportunity to impress as he makes his Citizens bow. The management team will also have a pair of trialists in their line-up as they run the rule over prospective recruits ahead of the new campaign. However, one player that won’t be involved is Yalany Baio as the combative midfielder failed to agree terms for the 2017/18 season and has now left the club. The game at the Etihad Campus is behind-closed-doors and not accessible to the general public. The V9 academy is the brainchild of England International and Leicester City striker Vardy. His aim is to discover non-league talent and promote them to the professional game while providing them with a unique educational experience into what it takes to play at the top level. A host of professional clubs will be represented, ranging from top domestic British clubs to those from Europe and beyond. Scouts from all of the English leagues and from Holland and Germany will be at the Academy that runs from June 5 to June 9 to watch the wannabes play games against each other and against Welsh clubs TNS and Bangor City, as well as a PFA side of released players.