FC BASEL right full back, SAMUEL INKOOM continues his gradual rise to stardom and is set to take on the European big boys as he leads his clubside to make an impact in the prestigeous UEFA Champions League.

The former Asante Kotoko defender, who starred in the 2010 World Cup in South Africa for Ghana, says he's looking forward to mix it with the likes of Wayne Rooney, Lionel Messi & Cristiano Ronaldo after his Swiss club Basel, qualified to the group stages of Europe's flagship competition where they were paired with German giants, Bayern Munich, AS Roma and CFR Cluj in Group E.

Inkoom told 90 MINUTES in an interview over the weekend. “I am naturally delighted to be playing in the UEFA Champions League as it is where you meet the Rooneys, the Ronaldos and the Messis to test your skills as a footballer,” he said.

“We were all waiting eagerly for the draw to find out which teams we would be pitted against and I think the duel with Bayern will be an interesting one as they are one of the powerhouses in European football.”

“But I must admit that we are not a small team either and fancy our chances of progressing to the next stage of the competition if we put in all the hard work. We've played Roma before and knows their strengths so I guess there will be no favourites,” he added.

FC Basel will travel to Romania to meet CFR Cluj on Matchday 1 of the competition on September 15 before hosting Bayern Munich in a glamour game on September 28.