Tottenham Hotspur and Portsmouth have been drawn into tough groups for the group stage of the 2008 UEFA Cup.

Portsmouth has been drawn alongside AC Milan in group E, and will meet the Italian club at Fratton Park in November. Portsmouth will also play SC Heerenveen, Braga and Wolfsburg in its group stage matches.

“It is a good group all the way round,” Portsmouth chief executive Peter Storrie was quoted as saying by the Canadian Press. “But we will enjoy it and I am sure our fans will pinch themselves thinking Portsmouth Football Club are going to play AC Milan in European competition.”

Spurs, meanwhile, will be involved in some tough encounters in group D, which includes Serie A log leaders Udinese, Spartak Moscow, Dinamo Zagreb and NEC Nijmegen.

Despite watching his club tumble to their worst start to a season in decades, club director Damien Comolli was upbeat about his side’s prospects in the UEFA Cup, saying: “I am sure we will do well. The players are highly motivated about the UEFA Cup. We are not getting the results we thought we would get. But it is not time to be pointing fingers at anyone.”