Champions League 2005/6, Group E
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AC Milan
Domestic finish last season - 2nd in Serie A
European pedigree - European Champions 1962, 1968, 1988, 1989, 1993, 2002
The coach - Carlo Ancelotti
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Bitter sweet: Massimo Ambrosini breaks PSV hearts with a late goal to put them out of last year's competition.
After the disaster that was last May's Champions League final against Liverpool in Istanbul, this is one coach who will not be lacking in motivation as he targets European glory once again.
'Even now, I can hardly believe what happened to us in Turkey,' concedes Ancelotti. 'We had the game in our hands, 3-0 up and with Liverpool looking beaten, yet they came back at us and we allowed them the opportunities they needed. It's something none of us will ever forget and for all the wrong reasons.
'It's gone now and the only thing we can do is try to get back into the position to win this competition. When you get to the final stage of the season, fatigue can play a part and who knows what else will face us by then, but we have to be positive.'
Player to watch - Kaka
Voted the best midfielder in last season's Champions League at a lavish UEFA ceremony in August, this Brazilian knows he has so much more in his locker than he showed during Milan's run to the 2005 final.
An attacking midfielder with real goal scoring intent, Kaka was a marked man for much of last season, but he is determined to rise above the attention and claim the ultimate prize.
'All my team mates were telling me what being a European Champion would mean in the run up to the final against Liverpool, so the emotion of losing that game was hard to accept,' he says. 'This competition has created so many legends at this club and I want to join them.'
The new face - Alberto Gilardino
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Chart topper: Milan's new signing scored more goals than anyone in Italy last season at former club Parma.
The Milan faithful, shattered by last season's Champions League final collapse, needed a new hero to worship and the club's hierarchy duly delivered as they paid out £16m to land this prolific Parma forward.
His partnership with the great Andriy Schevchenko could be the key to Milan's season, but he knows there will be great competition to land a starting place in this side as the veteran Christian Vieri also secured a move to the San Siro during the summer.
'My aim is to make sure I play every week and if that is the case, the rest takes care of itself at a club like this,' he says. 'Nothing but success will do when you are a Milan player and that means we have to put right what happened in the Champions League last season.'
Tactics board - Ancelotti started the Serie A season pairing Shevchenko with Gilardino up front and it may take time for that duo to blend into the deadly force he hopes they can be.
The impressive Andrea Pirlo and his trusty sidekick Gennaro Gattuso provide a platform for the likes of Kaka to weave his magic at the head of the midfield cluster and the Brazilian is often thrust forward in a three man attacking unit.
They have generally looked sound defensively, but all that changed at the back end of last season as they leaked goals aplenty that cost them trophies at home and in Europe. With defenders Paolo Maldini, Jaap Stam, Alessandro Nesta all well into their 30s, it may prove to be their weak spot once again.
Verdict: Righting what they see as the injustice of 2005 will provide all the inspiration Milan need to triumph this time, but an aging defence is a concern.
PSV Eindhoven
Domestic finish last season - Dutch champions
European pedigree - European Champions 1987, UEFA Cup winners 1977
The coach - Guus Hiddink
They say the job of a football coach is one of the most time-consuming in modern life. Many of the top names in the game visibly age before our very eyes as the pressure of top level competition becomes too much for the human body to take, so you have to wonder whether PVS's inspirational coach is biting off more than he can chew this season.
Remaining in charge of his Dutch champions while accepting the post of a national team from the other corner of the world sounds like professional suicide, but Hiddink thinks he can pull of his task of doubling up as Australia boss this season. 'It will not be a problem until the World Cup qualification period concludes in November,' says the former Holland and South Korea boss.
'I will oversee PSV's Champions League group games and the start of our league programme and then decide where we go once Australia's qualification is resolved. For now, I'm happy to do two jobs.'
Player to watch - Phillip Cocu
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Anchorman: Cocu provides PSV with stability and has a locker full of big match experience.
So often the bridesmaid to Holland's more famous names during his lengthy career at Barcelona, Cocu's importance to this PSV side was emphasised with his impressive contribution to their passage to the Champions League semi-finals last season.
A fine anchor at the heart of Hiddink's side, he chipped in with his share of vital contributions in the attacking third last season and admits he is revelling in the responsibility given to him in the PSV line-up. 'I have come back to Holland as the established player and that means I have a big role both on an off the pitch,' states Cocu.
'Last season went so well for us and for me personally also. For PSV to reach the semi-finals of the Champions League last season proves what is possible. We were not lucky to be there and should aim for more of the same this time.'
The new face - Timmy Simons
PSV Eindhoven coach Guus Hiddink had a major rebuilding job to do on his midfield as Mark van Bommel, Park Ji-Sung and Johann Vogel have left the club, but he believes his capture of Simons goes some way to plugging the gap.
A fine captain at Club Bruges last term, Simons is a versatile performer who can slot in at the back or in a central midfield berth and he is relishing the challenge. 'I asked Bruges if I could go to PSV because they are the top club in Holland and in Guus Hiddink they have a coach any player would want to work for,' says Simons.
Tactics board: Hiddink likes to employ a formation that can be switched from an attacking plan to a more defensive unit during the course of a match.
At times his 4-3-3 line-up can go for the jugular - with Jan Vannegoor of Hesselink teaming up with the speedy Robert in attack, supported ably on the wings by DaMarcus Beasley or Farfan, who can also be used as an out-and-out striker.
His rebuilt midfield may need time to settle and losing full-back Lee Young-po to Tottenham on the stroke of the transfer deadline was a blow. Time will tell if this PSV side can be as dynamic as last season's Champions League semi-finalists.
Verdict: They will fail to repeat the heroics of last season and may struggle to get through a tricky first group.
Schalke
Domestic finish last season - 2nd in the Bundesliga
European pedigree - UEFA Cup winners 1996
The coach - Ralf Rangnick
The bespectacled 47-year-old has much in common with Arsene Wenger, sharing with the Arsenal boss the same mediocre playing career, cerebral approach to the game, calm demeanour and man-management skills. An English-speaker, he has often expressed his desire to work in the Premiership.
Considered by many as the man most likely to succeed Jurgen Klinsmann as the coach of the German national team, he took over as Schalke boss from the sacked Jupp Heynckes early last season, working a minor miracle to take them from fourth-bottom to Bundesliga runners-up. Has also worked with Stuttgart and Hannover.
'All four teams in our group (Schalke, PSV Eindhoven, Milan and Fenerbahce) have the potential to go through,' is Rangnick's view of the Champions League draw.
'It's one of the toughest pools in the first phase; all our opponents have more European experience than us. That's a good thing. It will make sure we don't underestimate anyone. Our aim is to still be in the competition next year and I believe we will.'
Player to watch - Lincoln
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Boy from Brazil: Lincoln's free-kicks have been a feature of Schalke's recent success.
'Of course AC Milan are the big favourites in our group, 'accepts Lincoln. 'They stand out a mile. But we have every chance of beating PSV Eindhoven and Fenerbahce to second-place. I'm confident. The more important the games, the better we play. European nights at our ground are going to be sensational.'
The new face - Kevin Kuranyi
After three outstanding seasons leading the line for Stuttgart, the 23-year-old German international opted to move north this summer, joining Schalke in a £5 million deal. Immediately won the hearts of his new supporters with two goals in the 2-1 win at local rivals Borussia Dortmund.
Born in Rio to a German-Hungarian father and a Panamanian mother, he is mobile, extremely comfortable playing with his back to goal and is a fine finisher especially with his right-foot.
'I'm really looking forward to playing at the San Siro. One of the reasons I signed for Schalke was to compete in the Champions League and I'm convinced that the quality we have in the squad and our fantastic support will take us to the second round. Once there, anything can happen.'
Tactics board: Under Rangnick, Schalke have arguably become the most tactically sophisticated team in Germany, able to switch effortlessly from 4-4-2 to 4-3-3 to 4-2-3-1 to 4-1-3-2.
The latter system is the coach's favourite of the moment, with three attacking midfielders supporting a two-man strike force of Kevin Kuranyi and one from Gerald Asamoah, the Dane Ebbe Sand and his compatriot Soren Larsen, a recent signing from Djurgarden in Sweden.
Defensively Schalke is a mixed bag. Keeper Frank Rost and central defenders Mladen Krstajic and Marcelo Bordon are all outstanding, but left-back, the Georgian Levan Kobiashvili is by vocation a midfielder, while new Brazilian right-back Rafinha - bought from Curitiba - will need time to adapt to the game in Europe.
Verdict: Schalke's first-eleven is a good mixture of flair and solid organisation. The problem is a certain lack of depth to their squad and that means they may fall at the last 16 stage.
Fenerbahce
Domestic finish last season - Turkish champions
European pedigree - Champions League: First round: 1996-97, 2001-02, 2004-05
The coach - Christoph Daum
Controversial German boss who gained notoriety in the summer of 2000 for testing positive for cocaine, a bust which prevented him becoming his country's manager. Has fought back well from that huge setback, winning league titles in each of the past three years: Austria Vienna in 2003 and Fener in 2004 and 2005.
Intense and demanding, he came close to quitting Fener last season after repeated clashes with the board and certain members of his squad whom he accused of lacking commitment.
And he's up for the fight this time: 'If there's a group of death, this has to be it. AC Milan, Schalke and PSV Eindhoven are all top-notch teams full of talent. We will have our work cut it to qualify but we have to believe. I know I do. I'd love to go a long way in Europe. I've had lots of success domestically but little in continental competitions.'
Player to watch - Nicolas Anelka
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Anelka: Once, twice, three times a French outcast.
The current signs are not good. Recent reports in Turkey claim his on-off transfer to Newcastle has left him unsettled yet again and there is talk of a decidedly frosty relationship with Christoph Daum. A Champions League winner with Real Madrid in 2002.
The new face - Stephen Appiah
Ghanaian international defensive midfielder bought for £5.7 million from Juventus. Athletic, quick over the ground, a good reader of the game and ferocious in the tackle, the 24-year-old African had expressed a desire to play in the Premiership but now says he is more than happy in Turkey, noting 'The passion for football in Istanbul is amazing.'
The skipper of the Ghana side which is very much in contention for a ticket for the 2006 World Cup finals, he is also keen to establish himself in the world's premier club competition: 'Fenerbahce have proved they are the top team in Turkey. Now we must push on in Europe. A team with Anelka and some excellent Turkish and Brazilian players shouldn't fear anyone.'
Tactics Board: Don't be fooled that Fener often employ only one frontrunner (Nicolas Anelka) in a 4-1-3-1-1 formation. Christoph Daum's first instinct is to go for the opposition throat and the two wide midfielders (Serkan Balci and Tuncay Sanli) and Brazilian playmaker Alex push forward frequently, sometimes all at once. At such times, they are vulnerable to a swift counter.
Last season Daum was never quite satisfied with his defence and continually switched from a three to a four-man backline. This term he seems to have plumped for the latter.
Verdict: Daum's boys gung-ho style will win friends but few points.
