Benfica and Atletico Madrid face tough trips to Turkey and Kazakhstan as the two clubs headline Group C of the Champions League.
Astana, which became the first Kazakh team to qualify for the group stage, will host former European Cup winners Benfica and Atletico, as well as Turkish Super Lig champion Galatasaray.
Lukas Podolski, who arrived at Galatasaray this summer following a loan spell at Inter Milan, poked fun at Astana, which comes from the land of Borat.
Can't wait... pic.twitter.com/rfYJ8Acl2m
— Lukas-Podolski.com (@Podolski10) August 27, 2015
Astana made history after beating Cypriot club APOEL 2-1 on aggregate in the Champions League play-off. It began its journey in the second qualifying round of the Champions League in July.
Astana only became an official club in 2009 after two local clubs decided to merge. It won the Kazakh league in 2014 and the cup on two more occasions.
The group stage is much more familiar territory for Benfica, which is coming off a league double in Portugal. Coach Jorge Jesus has since departed, but the Eagles still have a solid squad consisting of ever-present captain Luisao, midfielders Filip Djuricic and Nicolas Gaitan and forward Konstantinos Mitroglu.
Galatasaray has also bulked up since winning its 20th league title this year. Podolski brings more experience to a lineup that already includes Wesley Sneijder and Burak Yilmaz, who scored eight goals during the 2012-13 Champions League campaign.
Predicted finish
1. Atletico Madrid
2. Benfica
3. Galatasaray
4. Astana
