Gill Welcomes Draw

David Gill joined Sir Alex Ferguson in giving a positive reaction to United's draw for the 2010/11 Champions League group stage.

After the procedure put the Reds in the same pot as Valencia, Rangers and Turkish side Bursaspor, Gill said: "It’s going to be interesting. I think it’s a good draw and hopefully we can progress through the group into the knockout stages.

"Obviously Sir Alex and [Rangers manager] Walter Smith go back a long, long way. I remember when we played up there in 2003 and Phil Neville scored a fairly rare goal for us. The atmosphere at Ibrox was amazing, similar to how it is at Celtic Park.

"I know the fans will get behind it and both games will be great occasions. I’ve already spoken to Sir Alex and he’s looking forward to the Rangers matches immensely.

"As for Valencia, we last played them competitively quite a few years ago, back in 2000/01 and we had tight games with them. I know we’ve both moved on since then but we’re looking forward to going there again."

Gill played down the challenges of a four-hour trek to Turkey to face Bursaspor, an unknown quantity as Champions League newcomers.

"You can talk yourself into thinking that’s a long trip, " he said. "And the the beauty of this competition is that we’ve again got some new teams making their debuts in it. We’re looking forward to going out there and meeting new people."

The carrot for all 32 teams in the Champions League group stage, not least United and the three London clubs Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham, is the chance to play at Wembley Stadium in the final next May. But Gill doesn't believe this is on the Reds' radar just yet with the first ball still to be kicked in the competition proper.

"I don’t think the players think about that at the moment, it’s only when you get closer to the final," he said.

"I think everyone at the club realises it’s a great, great competition and wherever the final’s played, it’ll be at a five-star stadium with a wonderful atmosphere, very well prepared by UEFA. I think moving the final to a Saturday has enhanced the competition but I don’t think any of our players will be thinking about that at this moment in time."

Gill hopes the English clubs can improve on last season's campaign, when none of the country's representatives reached the semi-finals.

"We missed out (on the semi-finals) unluckily last season, and I think all the English clubs will be very motivated. But the competition is getting more difficult. No team has retained the title in its current format which demonstrates the sheer competitiveness of it. We’ve just got to look forward to it and try to do well in it."