Reaction to the Champions League draw
26.08.2010
Olympique Lyon, Benfica and Hapoel Tel Aviv are the teams the Royal Blues will face in the Champions League. Head coach Felix Magath and four players give their reaction to the draw.
Felix Magath: We knew beforehand that we were going to get a tough group. Olympique Lyon knocked Real Madrid out of the Champions League last year and Benfica won the league comfortably in Portugal. So we're up against two very good teams. We'll have to have a look at Hapoel. They're certainly a team we can beat. It will be important to pick up points against all three teams at home. We're taking part in the Champions League with the aim of going through so we have to make the best of it. It definitely isn't an easy group!
Manuel Neuer: On paper it isn't a top group that's for sure. But Lyon and Benfica have lots of experience in the Champions League. We aim to work our way through because we really want to reach the knockout stage.
Ivan Rakitic: Quite a lot is possible in this group. We have the clear objective of overwintering in the Champions League. I'm hoping we can repeat our success of 2008 when we progressed as far as the quarter-finals. Lyon have been playing regularly in the Champions League for many years so in my eyes they're slight favourites.
Benedikt Höwedes: It's a very open group in which all the teams have a chance of going through. There are no clear favourites. We can't afford to underestimate any of our opponents.
Christoph Metzelder: It's a very even group and it certainly won't be easy. Nominally Hapoel are the big unknowns. The key to going through will be to win our home games, if possible. If you look at the draw as a whole, we can be satisfied.
