Kristoffer Zachariassen: Let's face Manchester United!

Tell me, who would you choose? The draw for the round of 16 of the Europa League will take place at 1pm on Friday, with Ferencváros as the group winner and the top seed.

Who the Hungarian champion will face (also) depends on which teams qualify for the Europa League on Thursday. Some of the pairings are Manchester United-Barcelona, Nantes-Juventus, Union Berlin-Ajax, PSV-Seville, and AS Roma-RB Salzburg.

Kristoffer Zachariassen has his heart set on Manchester United. But if he listens to his mind, he's not so sure about that anymore.

"I was a big Manchester United fan when I was a kid," the Norwegian winger told our portal. “I had posters on my bedroom wall, I was a fan of several footballers; Ruud van Nistelrooy, Roy Keane, Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs, and my compatriot Ole Gunnar Solskjaer were all brilliant players. Of our current potential opponents, MU is probably the strongest, but I would be happy if we had to face Manchester United because I always wanted to play against them... There are no easy opponents at this level anymore, so whoever we get, we can't be sure against anyone here. No matter who our opponent is, that team will be the favorite, but we're keen to go one more round."

Ferencváros will play the first match away on March 9, and the return match is scheduled for March 16 at the Puskás Aréna. Fradi fans from Norway will also attend the game, and dozens from Kristoffer Zachariassen's hometown of Sotra sure to be in the stands of the arena for the Europa League return leg.

"After we found out that we would qualify for the Europa League as group winners, my parents immediately told me that they would definitely like to come to Budapest for the match in the spring. Most of my family are coming, and some of my friends have also indicated that they would like to buy a ticket or two."

Ferencváros still has some work to do at home before the Europa League matches in March, as the team plays on Sunday in Debrecen whose team is playing well in the spring. The Norwegian player says they will face a tough encounter and are looking to get back to the winning route after the 0-0 score at the away match against Kisvárda and the 1-1 tie at home to Kecskemét.

"We were a bit disappointed after our last two games. We wanted to win both of them but didn't play as well as we could in Kisvárda and in the second half of the match against Kecskemét. On Sunday, we want to get back to the way we were and win again."

The 29-year-old footballer scored one goal in the spring when he played as a substitute in the 3–1 win at home to Paks. He feels mentally and physically fresh and enjoys the training session and matches. Meanwhile, he has a job to do at home, bathing and putting his daughter to sleep in the evenings.

"The evening shift is mine," he said with a smile. "I like to tell my daughter tales and wait until she falls asleep. I'm mentally and physically fit, I enjoy going to training, and I know the team will soon catch up. We're working hard, we know what we're capable of, and we're getting all the help we need from our professional staff. The atmosphere in the dressing room is great, we are focused and looking forward to the match against Debrecen on Sunday."