Schwaben UEFA Cup hopes

Handed the difficult of defending UEFA Cup champions Zenit Saint Petersburg, die Schwaben coach Markus Babbel called their opposition:

"A top European side.

"This game is a great opportunity for us to make a mark. We are looking forward to having the chance to test our strengths against one of the best teams in Europe. We will need to quickly switch from defence to attack if we want to cause a problem for the offensively strong and technically capable Russians."

Yildiray Bastürk, Timo Gebhart and Sebastian Rudy are out for the match with Sami Khedira's fitness a last minute decision.

Zenit Saint Petersburg have went through a number of transitions this year but have finally shed Andrei Arshavin who seemed to be more of a distraction late last year. However they have retooled their attacking lineup quickly with Hannover 96's Szabolcs Huszti and Russian capped Igor Semshov. After falling out of the Champions League the defending champions are anxious to return to form and VfB should expect a very tough battle at Petrovsky Stadium.