Cañizares sees Red

Focus on Liverpool 
Speaking ahead of Tuesday's Group B opener against Liverpool at the Mestalla stadium, Cañizares told uefa.com: "At the moment the final is a dream. We have to take one game at a time, without looking too far ahead. The first hurdle is Liverpool and then the other teams in the group, so we are focused on them. That will be tough enough."

Back in the big time 
Admittedly, Valencia made good use of their year away from the Champions League as they became Spanish champions for the first time in 31 seasons. However, Europe's top club competition is where they want to be. "We are thrilled to be back in the Champions League having missed out last season," explained Cañizares. "There is an element of responsibility too, because starting with Liverpool we are playing the best teams in Europe and want to maintain Valencia's place among the elite.

On the road again 
"We can also look forward to visiting famous stadiums like Anfield, which is a pleasure for any player. And when we hear the Champions League anthem before kick-off it will bring it home to us that we're back among the top clubs in Europe.

'Mental strength' 
"Our success in the Primera División should make us better respected by other teams. I think the Spanish league is the strongest in Europe and winning it will give us the mental strength to compete in the Champions League this year."

Four tops 
The acid test of Valencia's new maturity will likely be Liverpool, runners-up in the English Premiership last term. "I remember the great season they had two years ago when they won the four cups [UEFA Cup, FA Cup, English League Cup and UEFA Super Cup]," said the 32-year-old custodian. "They are still a top team. Once you have got past the 'This is Anfield' sign you are in for a hard time. They have shown that they are a hard side to beat away from home too, but if we are at our best it won't be easy for them to get a result at our place."

Group favourites 
Nor will the other sides in the section - FC Spartak Moskva and FC Basel - be pushovers. "It is probably fair to say that we [Valencia and Liverpool] are favourites given the history and resources of both teams," Cañizares said. "But you have to respect teams like Spartak and Basel if you want to beat them. You have to show your strength on the pitch, and if not you risk an upset."

Don't look back 
Back in 2000 and 2001, it was Valencia in the role of underdog. Now the surprise will be if they fail to emerge from the first group stage. Yet as Cañizares admitted, his team-mates would readily swap seniority for success. "It would be fantastic if we could get that far again. The pain of losing those finals was as great as the pride we felt in having reached them. But we can't dwell on those defeats. Our job is to achieve what we failed to do in 2000 and 2001 and get our hands on that cup."