All four Bundesliga sides in the Europa League take on former cup winners tonight in the round of 32. The names involved are commonly associated with the Champions League, with Borussia Dortmund, Schalke 04 and Bayer Leverkusen all playing in ties promising excitement and quality. Many will have their focus shifted towards Augsburg, where Jürgen Klopp returns to Germany with Die Mannschaft's own Emre Can, whilst several other Germany internationals are involved in Europa League action all over the continent.
The same is true of World Cup winners Lukas Podolski and Miroslav Klose, who face off against each other as Galatasaray take on Lazio. Shkodran Mustafi and his Valencia side get their tie against Rapid Vienna under way tonight at 21:05 CET.
Reus: "We're obviously among the favourites for the Europa League"
Borussia Dortmund are in attacking mode as they begin their campaign in the knock-out stages of the Europa League. "We know that we're being tested as the very highest level," said manager Thomas Tuchel ahead of the first leg of their tie against Porto tonight at Signal-Iduna-Park. "We feel ready for it."
The clash between the two former Champions League winners has a high-class feel about it. Borussia look set for a return to Europe's premier club competition next season, but for the time being, Europa League success this season remains their goal. "We'll see how good we really are in the knock-out rounds," said Germany international Marco Reus ahead of the meeting with the 27-time Portuguese champions. "We're obviously among the favourites for the Europa League.
Aubameyang fit again
Tuchel will have striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang back for the game. The African Footballer of the Year will give an added impetus to the Borussia attack, which has tailed off somewhat in recent weeks in the Bundesliga. "It's likely we'll score more than one goal," said goalkeeper Roman Bürki. The Swiss stopper will probably come in for Roman Weidenfeller, who played in the group stages but is currently suffering from illness.
Porto, who dropped into the competition from the Champions League, will be a hard nut to crack. The side, who are currently in third place in the Portuguese top division, recently celebrated a huge 2-1 win over arch-rivals Benfica. The team's star player is legendary Spanish goalkeeper Iker Casillas. "We need to continue with humility and if possible, win all our games from now to the end of the season," said Casillas after the game in Lisbon.
Schalke vs. Shakhtar: “It will be a tough game”
Schalke will take on the unpredictable Shakhtar Donetsk in their Europa League round-of-32 clash. The Royal Blues were unbeaten in the group stage and proceeded to the knock-out round as group winners, whilst Shakhtar, who were relegated to the Europa League from the Champions League, will give them a stern test. “This is where the competition really begins,” said Schalke striker Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting. His team will be hoping for a good result against the 2009 UEFA Cup winners.
“It will be tough game,” warned Younes Belhanda, who is on loan from Dynamo Kiev. The 25-year-old knows the Ukranian runners-up well from having played against them in the league when he was at Kiev. Schalke are expecting “a strong team with a lot of Brazilians who can move the ball well,” even though two of Shakhtar’s most influential players will not be involved in the tie, as striker Alex Teixeira has moved to China and midfielder Fred is serving a doping ban. Belhanda thinks it has made the assignment easier, “but Donetsk still have a lot of good players whom we will have to watch out for.”
All four Bundesliga sides in the Europa League take on former cup winners tonight in the round of 32. The names involved are commonly associated with the Champions League, with Borussia Dortmund, Schalke 04 and Bayer Leverkusen all playing in ties promising excitement and quality. Many will have their focus shifted towards Augsburg, where Jürgen Klopp returns to Germany with Die Mannschaft's own Emre Can, whilst several other Germany internationals are involved in Europa League action all over the continent.
The same is true of World Cup winners Lukas Podolski and Miroslav Klose, who face off against each other as Galatasaray take on Lazio. Shkodran Mustafi and his Valencia side get their tie against Rapid Vienna under way tonight at 21:05 CET.
Reus: "We're obviously among the favourites for the Europa League"
Borussia Dortmund are in attacking mode as they begin their campaign in the knock-out stages of the Europa League. "We know that we're being tested as the very highest level," said manager Thomas Tuchel ahead of the first leg of their tie against Porto tonight at Signal-Iduna-Park. "We feel ready for it."
The clash between the two former Champions League winners has a high-class feel about it. Borussia look set for a return to Europe's premier club competition next season, but for the time being, Europa League success this season remains their goal. "We'll see how good we really are in the knock-out rounds," said Germany international Marco Reus ahead of the meeting with the 27-time Portuguese champions. "We're obviously among the favourites for the Europa League.
Aubameyang fit again
Tuchel will have striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang back for the game. The African Footballer of the Year will give an added impetus to the Borussia attack, which has tailed off somewhat in recent weeks in the Bundesliga. "It's likely we'll score more than one goal," said goalkeeper Roman Bürki. The Swiss stopper will probably come in for Roman Weidenfeller, who played in the group stages but is currently suffering from illness.
Porto, who dropped into the competition from the Champions League, will be a hard nut to crack. The side, who are currently in third place in the Portuguese top division, recently celebrated a huge 2-1 win over arch-rivals Benfica. The team's star player is legendary Spanish goalkeeper Iker Casillas. "We need to continue with humility and if possible, win all our games from now to the end of the season," said Casillas after the game in Lisbon.
Schalke vs. Shakhtar: “It will be a tough game”
Schalke will take on the unpredictable Shakhtar Donetsk in their Europa League round-of-32 clash. The Royal Blues were unbeaten in the group stage and proceeded to the knock-out round as group winners, whilst Shakhtar, who were relegated to the Europa League from the Champions League, will give them a stern test. “This is where the competition really begins,” said Schalke striker Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting. His team will be hoping for a good result against the 2009 UEFA Cup winners.
“It will be tough game,” warned Younes Belhanda, who is on loan from Dynamo Kiev. The 25-year-old knows the Ukranian runners-up well from having played against them in the league when he was at Kiev. Schalke are expecting “a strong team with a lot of Brazilians who can move the ball well,” even though two of Shakhtar’s most influential players will not be involved in the tie, as striker Alex Teixeira has moved to China and midfielder Fred is serving a doping ban. Belhanda thinks it has made the assignment easier, “but Donetsk still have a lot of good players whom we will have to watch out for.”
The nine-time Ukrainian champions have already crushed the Royal Blues’ European Cup dreams once before. In 2005, they took on Schalke in the round of 32 as well, drawing 1-1 in Donetsk before winning 1-0 in Gelsenkirchen. This time though, the hosts may be a bit rusty, as they haven’t played any competitive football since the start of their winter break on 8th December. Furthermore, Shakhtar are having to play the match in Lviv, 1000 kilometres from home, near to the Polish border, because of the ongoing war in eastern Ukraine.
Augsburg versus Liverpool in "dream tie"
FC Augsburg are on the brink of the biggest game in the club's history when they face Liverpool and Jürgen Klopp. "It's a dream tie for Augsburg," said the club's sporting director Stefan Reuter. Manager Markus Weinzierl cites Liverpool as the "the highlight of the club's history for everyone."
The tie against the English giants is made even more interesting by the fact that Liverpool possess Germany international Emre Can and the charismatic former Dortmund manager Jürgen Klopp. "We're playing on a huge stage," added Weinzierl, with the club and its fans brimming with excitement ever since the draw in December. All tickets for the home leg were sold out within an hour. Club captain Paul Verhaegh: "We're clear underdogs, but we want to surprise people."
Bayer dreaming of their first title since 1993
Bayer Leverkusen are determined to secure their first title since 1993. "We have big expectations in the Europa League and want to do well. We need belief if we are to do so," said Rudi Völler ahead of their away match against Sporting Lisbon tonight at 21:05 CET.
Bayer chief executive Michael Schade reiterated the importance of tonight’s match, claiming: "We missed out on one of our aims after dropping out of the DFB Cup. We now have two opportunities in the Bundesliga and the Europa League. You only have to look at what teams are still left in it. Teams like Manchester United, Liverpool, Tottenham, Napoli – it’s certainly no second-rate cup.
Leno: "Sporting are on the same level to us"
German goalkeeper Bernd Leno is in agreement, and will take confidence from the fact that his side are unbeaten in six since dropping out of the Champions League and have climbed to third place in the Bundesliga. "It’s a great competition, and we want to get at least a draw and score as many goals as possible. We need to put ourselves in a good position going into the second leg," said the 23-year-old, who went on to admit that "Sporting are on the same level as us."
