Monday, August 10

Champions League draw countdown part 4


17 days to go

In the run up to the UEFA Champions League group stage draw on August 27 in Monaco, we will preview one of United's possible opponents each day.


VfL Wolfsburg

The club was formed at the end of World War Two for the staff of Volkswagen.

Last season, they pipped Bayern Munich to the Bundesliga title by two points – their first ever championship.

During that season, they equalled the longest ever Bundesliga winning streak, with ten victories on the bounce.

They have three potent strikers – Grafite and Edin Dzeko who scored 54 goals between them last term and ex Newcastle forward Obafeme Martins, who joined the club for £10 million in the summer. Of the Pot Four teams, Wolfsburg are by far and away the best.

They play at the imaginatively named Volkswagen Arena, which has a 30,000 capacity.









The city itself is in the central north part of Germany...kind of in the same position as Leeds or Newcastle are in England. You can reach it easily from Hamburg, Berlin, Hannover and Leipzig.

Ways to get there
Newcastle to Hannover on TUlfly and Flybe for £50
Manchester to Hannover on Flybe for £80
Birmingham to Hannover on Flybe for £80
London Stansted to Hannover on Air Belin or Lufthansa for £100
Southampton to Hannover on Flybe for £100
London Heathrow to Hannover on bmi or Air Belin for £130

and then a 30-minutes train for £20

Liverpool to Berlin Schoenefeld on easyJet for £55
East Midlands to Berlin Schoenefeld on Ryanair or germanwings for £10
Edinburgh to Berlin Schoenefeld on Ryanair or germanwings for £15
London Stansted to Berlin Schoenefeld on Ryanair for £25
Bristol to Berlin Schoenefeld on easyJet for £35
Glasgow International to Berlin Schoenefeld on easyJet for £49
London Gatwick to Berlin Schoenefeld on easyJet for £55
London Luton to Berlin Schoenefeld on easyJet for £70

and then an hour-long train for £70

London Stansted to Hamburg Lubek on Ryanair for £5 and then train for two hours for £85

Manchester to Bremen on Ryanair for £50
London Stansted to Bremen on Ryanair for £60
Edinburgh to Bremen on Ryanir for £55

and then train for two hours and 15 minutes for £50

London Luton to Dortmund on easyJet for £35 and then a two-hour 15-minute train for £90

Manchester to Paderborn on Air Berlin for £90
London Stansted to Paderborn on Air Berlin for £100

and then train for two hours and 40 minutes for £60

Manchester to Frankfurt Hahn on Ryanair for £10
Birmingham to Frankfurt Hahn on Ryanair for £10
Edinburgh to Frankfurt Hahn on Ryanair for £10
Glasgow Prestwick to Frankfurt Hahn on Ryanair for £10
London Stansted to Frankfurt Hahn on Ryanair for £10

and then train for three hours for £140

Manchester to Dusseldorf Weeze on Ryanair for £10
Birmingham to Dusseldorf Weeze on Ryanair for £30
Edinburgh to Dusseldorf Weeze on Ryanair for £15
London Stansted to Dusseldorf Weeze on Ryanair for £15

and then train for three hours and 10 minutes for £105

London Gatwick to Cologne on easyJet for £45
London Stansted to Cologne on germanwings for £50
Edinburgh to Cologne on germanwings for £100
London Heathrow to Cologne on Lufthansa and bmi for £105
East Midlands to Cologne on Lufthansa for £105.

and then the train for three-and-a-half hours for £120

London Stansted to Nuremburg on Air Berlin for £90 and then a three-hour 45-minute train for £170

London Stansted to Baden-Baden on Ryanair for £15 and than a five-and-a-half-hour train for £195

London Stansted to Zweibrucken for £60 and then six-hour train for £180

London Stansted to Memmingen for £70 and then a six-hour and 15 minute train for £200
London Stansted to Friedrichshafen for £60 and then a seven-hour train for £120.

Fun factor: 5/10
Safety factor: 10/10
Bargain factor: 8/10
Convenience factor: 7/10
Score: 30/40

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