Sides savour group stage draw

Group E
AS Roma, FC Basel 1893, FK Crvena Zvezda, RC Strasbourg, Trømso IL We have a good chance to qualify from this group, on paper at least. We'll do everything we can to finish first and although I'm not very happy to start with a long trip to Norway, I'm satisfied with the draw. It will be a pleasure to face Walter Zenga's Crvena Zvezda – he's a good friend of mine. Roma coach Luciano Spalletti

It's a very interesting group. We know a lot about all the teams except Trømso. The other three play Latin football, but we expect the Norwegians to adopt the English style. We have a realistic chance of reaching our goal of still being in the competition in the spring. Neither Strasbourg, Trømso nor Roma are doing that well in their leagues but we won't draw any wrong conclusions from that. Basel coach Christian Gross

Roma, Basel, Tromsø and Strasbourg are all famous European names. We play good, strong football so we have a chance of qualifying, but the key is the first two matches - we must look to take a minimum of four points. Crvena Zvezda have not played European football during the spring since 1992; now we want to see springtime in Europe. Crvena Zvezda defender Milan Dudić

The Roma game will see us play against Olivier Dacourt, who made his name here before moving on. Crvena Zvezda are a big team with a prestigious history and some good up-and-coming players. The Basel match will almost be a derby and derbies are always interesting. I don't know much about Tromsø except that they knocked out Galatasaray [SK] in the last round. When my players see these big names, their motivation will return. Strasbourg coach Jacky Duguépéroux

I'm delighted we have been drawn to meet Roma, they are one of Europe's biggest clubs. It will be very special to play against them here at Tromsø. Tromsø defender Morten Pedersen

Group F
PFC CSKA Moskva, Olympique de Marseille, SC Heerenveen, PFC Levski Sofia, FC Dinamo Bucuresti

For us the draw is fairly good. I think we can play well against all these clubs. We know the sides from Eastern Europe fairly well - they have good traditions. CSKA Moskva director Aleksandr Stelmakh

It's a well-balanced draw. We're going to meet the holders, and we will have to concentrate and apply ourselves. We have a good chance, we must play our best - especially in the away games. Only three of the five sides can go through and, if we play as we can and take the opposition seriously, we have every chance of qualifying. Marseille president Pape Diouf

It's always going to be hard facing the holders CSKA Moskva, but we have a young and talented squad and we think we can progress from this group. We've been to Bucharest before and that experience may help us. Drawing big sides like Marseille is what this tournament is all about. Heerenveen director Henk Hoekstra

We didn't expect an easy draw and indeed, all four teams in our group are very strong. If we play well, anything is possible. All our opponents are teams of high quality, but we have a chance. Levski coach Stanimir Stoilov

Group G
VfB Stuttgart, PAOK FC, FC Shakhtar Donetsk, Stade Rennais FC, AFC Rapid Bucuresti

It is definitely not an easy group. Donetsk are the reigning Ukrainian champions. Rennes may be underperforming at the moment but they have been among the leading clubs in France in recent years. PAOK and Rapid shouldn't be underestimated either. Nonetheless we want to reach the next round. Stuttgart sporting manager Herbert Briem

Our aim is to get six points in order to qualify. The draw was not the best possible but we are hopeful of qualifying. PAOK midfielder Pantelis Konstantinidis

It didn't really matter who Shakhtar were drawn with, they simply have to proceed to the next stage. The draw threw up some interesting games for us: Rapid are led by the son of our coach, Mircea Lucescu, while PAOK knocked out [another Ukrainian club FC] Metalurh Donetsk in the first round. Stuttgart and Rennes are both formidable opponents but Shakhtar have the strength to rise to the task. Shakhtar executive director Yuri Kolotsey

Stuttgart and Donetsk will provide two big games at the Route de Lorient stadium but qualification for the Round of 32 could hinge on our performance against PAOK in Greece. Rennes general manager Pierre Dreossi

Group H
Besiktas JK, Sevilla FC, Bolton Wanderers FC, FC Zenit St. Petersburg, Vitória SC

It's not an easy group. There are several strong sides like Sevilla and Bolton who both have talented players - especially Bolton. We are a good team though and we don't fear our opponents. If we can concentrate and have desire and faith we will qualify from this group, whatever it takes. We can win all the games but the home matches are crucial. We must perform on the pitch, names mean nothing. Besiktas defender Çağdaş Atan

Sevilla and Bolton are the strongest teams in this group but there are no easy rivals in the competition. Bolton are fifth in the Premiership and have good players like Jay-Jay Okocha, [Hidetoshi] Nakata, [El Hadji] Diouf and [Jared] Borgetti so we are expecting a tough match. It's vital we start the group on a positive note and we are going to give everything we have to qualify for the knockout phase. Being in this competition has generated a lot of excitement for everyone at the club. Sevilla coach Juan De La Cruz Ramos

I think Group H has thrown up some tasty away trips for us. Besiktas are a huge club and we'll relish that match but I think the Sevilla trip will be tough. We played them in a friendly not too long ago in Spain and they beat us 2-0 so perhaps we have a chance for revenge. But in all honesty, we were excited about getting anyone. Bolton chairman Phil Gartside

We are in one of the toughest and most even groups. Much will depend on the match schedule. We're happy with it, but all talk of home and away advantage is totally senseless because any team can cause an upset. I believe Besiktas are the strongest team in our section, but if we can beat them in Turkey then we should qualify. Zenit spokesman Leonid Genusov

We have to take each game as it comes and I'm sure we will have some tough matches. It won't be easy for our opponents either though, because we have just eliminated Polish champions Wisla Kraków and will be confident. Besiktas are very difficult as the atmosphere in Turkey is very intimidating. Sevilla are strong opponents too. Guimarães defender Rogério