Fulham’s reward for their stunning victory over Juventus is a Europa League quarter-final with German side Wolfsburg. The first leg will be played in London on April 1 with the return game at the Volkswagen Arena on April 8.
Roy Hodgson’s side recovered from losing the first leg 3-1 and conceding an early goal in the second leg at Craven Cottage to secure a memorable 5-4 aggregate win against the Italian giants.
Wolfsburg now await in the last eight after the German champions beat Russian outfit Rubin Kazan 3-2 on aggregate in the last 16.
Fulham defender Chris Baird believes the Juventus result was a career high for most of the players, but feels they still have the quality to progress further.
“To get to the quarter-finals of the Europa League is a massive achievement for the club,” he told fulhamfc.com. ”‘I got a text from one of my mates saying ‘You don’t get much bigger than that’ and to be fair I don’t think we’ve had bigger than that in our careers.”
Wolfsburg coach Lorenz-Gunther Kostner welcomed his side’s draw, although he is aware they are coming up against a proven force in the competition this season.
“This is a good draw,” he said. “We will do all we can to reach the next round. English football could suit us. But of course we are warned – Fulham have beaten Basle and Juventus already. Therefore, we are going to have to put in a top performance.”
Wolfsburg managing director Dieter Hoeness is also wary of the threat of Fulham.
“They have not only beaten teams like Juventus and Shakhtar Donetsk, but they have beaten Manchester United 3-0 already too. Fulham have some really strong players like Bobby Zamora and Damien Duff.”
The Cottagers could face another German club in the semi-finals with a clash against Hamburg or Belgian outfit Standard Liege the reward if they can continue their European adventure.
Quarter-finals April 1:
Fulham v Wolfsburg – Buy Fulham v Woldsburg Tickets
Quarter-finals April 8:
Wolfsburg v Fulham - Buy Wolfsburg v Fulham Tickets
