Borussia Dortmund managing director Lars Ricken looks forward to 'exciting' Champions League matches after the draw revealed their eight opponents for the League Phase.
The BVB face Inter Milan (H), Arsenal (A), Aston Villa (A), Villarreal (H), Real Betis (H), Bodo/Glimt (A), AEK Athens (H) and Sabah FK (A).
Of these, Die Borussen took on Inter, Villarreal and Bodo/Glimt last year too, but face the Gunners in a competitive fixture after 12 years.
Meanwhile, Betis, Athens, Villa and Sabah come up against Dortmund for the first time in European history.
Ricken is anticipating some exciting matchups he feels are worth looking forward to while sending an monious warning to last year's opponents Inter and Bodo:
"These are exciting matches that we can look forward to. With Inter Milan, Villarreal CF, and Bodø/Glimt, we’ll be facing three familiar opponents from last season, while at the same time, AEK Athens and Sabah FK – two teams we’ve never played before – are waiting for us. That’s certainly exciting, especially since we still have a score to settle with Inter and Bodø from last year."
Bodo/Glimt canceled out Dortmund twice at the Wesfalonstadion to draw 2-2 whereas the Nerazzurri picked up a 2-0 victory on the final day, courtesy of two late goals.
With Dortmund strengthening their squad over the summer, fans would expect much better fortunes against both teams when the sides renew hostilities again this season.
Ricken also stated the club's goal of reaching rhe last-16 and sounded confident of their chances of doing it in the first round itself.
"Our minimum goal is to reach the Round of 16 – ideally, we’ll achieve that within these eight games."
Dortmund failed to reach the Champions League Round of 16 last term for the first time since the 2021-22 season.
After winning just three of their eight games in the League Phase, the BVB finished 17th on the table and went into the knockout playoffs where they drew Serie A side Atalanta.
A 2-0 victory at home, courtesy of Serhou Guirassy and Maximiliam Beier goals, made it seem like Dortmund are on their way to the last-16.
But La Dea handed them a harsh reality check in Bergamo, smashing the BVB 4-1 with Lazar Samardzic scoring the winner in extra-time, and send them packing.
A repeat appears unlikely with Dortmund expected to finish within top eight positions on the Champions League table after being handed a facile draw for the round.
Add us as a preferred source on Google