At the same stage last year we cruised past NK Zeljeznicar of Bosnia, but this time we will play either Partizan Belgrade or Djurgardens of Sweden with the first leg away from home.
The Serbian side will be familiar to many of you after our 1998 Cup Winners Cup defeat, when a penalty in each leg handed them a 2-2 away goals victory.
Partizan are the reigning champions of Serbia and can field a full team of current internationals from around Eastern Europe and Scandinavia, but that didn’t stop them crashing out of the UEFA Cup to Slavia Prague at the second round stage last season.
But Djurgardens may be a new name to you.
The Stockholm based club have won the Swedish title on nine occasions, including last season, and also top this season’s table at the halfway stage.
Their squad includes former Manchester United winger Jesper Blomqvist, together with current Sweden internationals Andreas Isaksson and Kim Kallstrom.
Djurgardens' most recent European campaign ended in a second round UEFA Cup defeat by Bordeaux.
Sir Bobby is well aware of the scale of the task we face to reach the group stage, commenting: "I think this is a tough draw. They are both good teams and I am particularly aware that Partizan is a very good and technically strong side.
"I had hoped for a softer draw, but as it turns out, it's a difficult draw. It will also be difficult for whichever team progresses to play us, particularly when they come to Newcastle.
"Our ambitions are high and we hope to go through. We have already tasted Champions League football and know what we are playing for."
Still, Lazio have been drawn against Benfica so it could have been much, much worse.