LONDON - Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson was delighted with his team's draw for the group stages of the Champions League on Thursday and was looking forward to another clash with Portuguese side Benfica.

United's bid to make amends for last season's final defeat against Barcelona is unlikely to end at the first hurdle after the draw, which pitted the Premier League champions against Benfica, Swiss outfit Basel and Romanian newcomers Otelul Galati.

United's two matches against Benfica will evoke memories of the club's 1968 victory over the Lisbon club in the European Cup final at Wembley.

Inspired by Bobby Charlton and George Best, Sir Matt Busby's team was able to beat Eusebio's Benfica 4-1 in extra-time to win its first European Cup.

"It's an interesting draw with no real travel difficulties. We're looking forward to the games. We've played Benfica in the past - they're always great games. There's great history between the two clubs," Ferguson told uefa.com.

"Basel are doing really well. Swiss teams tend to bring lots of young players through their system, which is great. We have played them before, in 2002-03. We don't really know much about Otelul Galati, but that's the beauty of the Champions League, you get fresh teams to play against."

Rui Costa, the Benfica director, anticipated an emotional reunion with United.

"United are one of the top clubs in the world, and it fits well with Benfica, because we are celebrating 50 years since our first European Cup triumph," said Costa.

"Basel and Otelul are also strong. Otelul are Romanian champions and it is their first time in the competition, so they are the biggest mystery for us. Although we respect our opponents, we believe we can qualify and we want to qualify."

Chelsea's draw was a case of friends reunited as Andre Villas-Boas's side was placed with Spain's Valencia, German club Bayer Leverkusen and Belgium's Genk.

For Chelsea winger Juan Mata it means a return to his old club Valencia on Spetember 28, just one month after his move from the Mestalla Stadium to Stamford Bridge.

Former Chelsea midfielder Michael Ballack will come face-to-face with his old teammates when his current club, Bayer Leverkusen, takes on the Blues.

Chelsea communications director Steve Atkins said: "Every draw throws up challenges and this is no different, and I have spoken to Andre Villas-Boas and he certainly feels that too.

"Valencia is a formidable team and a very difficult place to go with their support. Juan Mata will be returning there a little bit more quickly than he thought.

"Bayer Leverkusen is also a difficult one and we will be delighted to meet up with Michael Ballack again, and Genk too are full of talent and should not be underestimated."

Manchester City's first taste of the Champions League has thrown up some fascinating ties as Roberto Mancini's expensively assembled squad faces German giant Bayern Munich, Spain's Villarreal and Italian outfit Napoli.

City football administrator Brian Marwood expects his club to hold its own among Europe's elite.

"It's a fantastic group with four fantastic sides," Marwood said. "It's going to be extremely competitive. I genuinely believe there's four teams who can compete for the two places on an even keel.

"It's a fantastic part of Manchester City's history to be here for the first time in Europe's premier club competition.

"We really believe we can go into this competition and do well with the spirit that we have."

Arsenal, which edged into the group stages after beating Udinese in a playoff, has been drawn with French club Marseille, Greece's Olympiakos and Germany's Borussia Dortmund.

David Miles, the club's secretary, said: "The first priority was to get there, but I think we are quietly pleased with the draw. We have played some of our opponents before so we are looking forward to it."

Agence France-Presse

Barcelona's Lionel Messi, who was named the Best Player in Europe for the 2010-11 season, poses with his award during the Champions League draw in Monaco on Thursday. Title-holder Barcelona has been drawn with seven-time European Cup winner AC Milan, plus outsiders BATE Borisov of Belarus and Viktoria Plzen of Czech Republic in the group stage of the Champions League. Meanwhile, the La Liga season will start this weekend after the Spanish league and the players' union sealed a deal over unpaid wages on Thursday that ended the first strike action in almost three decades. Last week's first round of matches in the top two divisions was postponed as the two sides haggled over issues including the value of a fund to cover unpaid player salaries at clubs that are struggling financially or have gone into administration. The first round of matches, including Barcelona at Malaga and Real Madrid at home against Athletic Bilbao, will now be played on Jan 21 and 22, and the games scheduled for that weekend moved to Oct 26. Jean-Pierre Amet / Reuters

(China Daily 08/27/2011 page16)