Vogt: ''Tottenham would be my preferred opponents''

Kevin, have you given any thought to the Europa League draw?

''Of course, there's a lot of excitement about it. We've been talking about it in the team. The first pot is made up almost exclusively of Champions League clubs. There are some real giants in there, like Arsenal or AC Milan. Personally, I like it when you draw a big team, I'd love to go against one of the big names. But overall you want the group to be a good mix. At the end of the day, you want to be able to make it through to the next round.''

Is there one particular team you would like to face? 

''Rome is my favourite city, so a European trip there would be cool. But in terms of a team, I'd like to draw Tottenham Hotspur. Being able to play in their new stadium in London would be a great experience.''

How big is the ambition to make it through to the knock-out rounds, especially after being eliminated in the group stage in the two previous European campaigns?

''The ambition is massive. Making it past the group stage of the Europa League is very much what we're aiming for. We have deliberately set ourselves ambitious goals, but it's definitely realistic, given the quality of our squad. We want to achieve maximum success and still be playing in Europe after Christmas.''

What experiences have you taken from the previous two European campaigns? 

"It was a tough learning experience. We were often at the same level as our opponents, but we just weren't able to get the results over the line and we ended up paying the price for it. It was a learning process for us as a team. Today we are a lot more mature and experienced. That will help us."