"It is going to be a tough game for us," says Benitez. "When you get to the last 16 of the Champions League you are playing against the best teams on the continent. In terms of their name, maybe Leverkusen are not as illustrious as some of the others but they are a very good team and they've showed that.
"Some of the players here will know about them better than me, having played against them in 2002. German teams are always very difficult to play against and Leverkusen will be no different. They are a hardworking team with some very strong players and plenty of experience.
"It would be nice to win the home leg by a lot of goals but that is not always possible. Sometimes just one goal can be enough. You cannot say what will be the best result because you do not know what will happen in the second leg. But if we can keep a clean sheet and score some goals then that would be fantastic."