Claudio Ranieri "very happy" to make Champions League return

Claudio Ranieri has admitted that he is looking forward to locking horns with some of European football's biggest names when Leicester City make their Champions League bow this week.

While it is a new experience for the Foxes, who will compete in the 32-team event for the first time as a reward for their Premier League success last term, Ranieri has plenty of experience on the continent's big stage.

The 64-year-old last managed in the Champions League as Inter Milan manager in 2012, when they were knocked out in the first knockout round by Marseille, and says that this could be his - and indeed his players' - last taste of the showpiece competition.

"I'm very happy to come back. The Champions League is not new to me and I can tell them something about it," he told reporters. "This could be a once-in-a-lifetime moment for the players, of course. We have seven matches in 22 days and I said at the start every game is different, recharge the batteries and clean the last match.

"We have to play our football. We can't change. If our football is good for the Champions League, we have to continue. If we don't play our style we lose the Leicester way. There are two big positions to go to knock out.

"The third position is also good for us because we need good experience. It is important for us to go into December. Now is the right moment to say, hey, forget the fairy tale. It is a new season. Everything is new."

Leicester face Club Brugge in their opening group-stage tie on Wednesday evening, although only 20,000 are expected at the Jan Breydel Stadium - a third below full capacity.