Rebuilt Fortuna relish European return

Fortuna Hjørring only entered the UEFA Women's Cup once – going all the way to the final in 2002/03. On Thursday they return to the European fray in the new UEFA Women's Champions League at home in the first leg of their Round of 32 tie with ASD CF Bardolino Verona.

Long wait
After claiming the Danish title in 2001/02, Fortuna entered the second season of UEFA women's club competition and knocked out the likes of SK Trondheims-Ørn and Arsenal LFC on their way to the final, where they fell to a Hanna Ljungberg-inspired Umeå IK. Since then Brøndby IF have dominated the Danish scene but last season Fortuna reclaimed the championship, giving them a bye to the Round of 32 in the first season of UEFA's new tournament.

Tough draw
Camilla Sand Andersen, fresh from Denmark's UEFA WOMEN'S EURO 2009™ campaign, was an important part of Fortuna's midfield last season but knows they have been dealt a difficult hand against Italian champions Bardolino, who have reached the semi-finals and quarter-finals over the last two seasons. And if that was not enough, should Fortuna win they would have a Round of 16 tie against either ŽFK Mašinac Niš or Olympique Lyonnais, who have reached the last four two years running.

'Exciting'
"It should be exciting," Sand Andersen told uefa.com. "It's a pretty tough game. And if we are lucky enough to make it through we have Lyon in the next game, if they win their game. It's going to be a hard path if we are going to go all the way, but we want to make a good impression and try to get some experience."

Rebuilding
Janne Madsen, Mariann Gajhede and Tanja Christensen are the only players remaining from 2002/03, and the 23-year-old Sand Andersen admits that a period of transition caused Fortuna's long wait for a second European campaign. "That's why the last seven years have been a bit rough because we have had to change many players," she said. "Now we have built a young team up and it should be exciting to get some experience in Europe."