Stoke boss Tony Pulis has said that he is delighted to be playing in the Europa League but is concerned by the amount of travelling involved.
The Potters are in Kiev to take on Dynamo in their Group E opener tonight, in what will be the first of a few trips to eastern Europe.
"Someone asked me if I'm excited about being in Europe - I don't think we are in Europe if you look at the teams we are playing!" Pulis said.
"We are in Ukraine, Israel and Turkey. We got the short straw and the travelling distances are horrendous but we are looking forward to it.
"We have to manage the squad; there were some good players not in the team on Saturday [for the Premier League victory over Liverpool] who will get a chance to show what they can do. It is what everyone aspires to and we have to cope with, but it is new to us."
Stoke, who are playing European football for the first time in 37 years, will also face Besiktas and Maccabi Tel Aviv in the group stage of the competition.
