Txiki Begiristain was a relieved man after Barcelona avoided a Champions League quarter-final tie with an English club after Friday's draw.Barca will face German outfit Schalke in the last eight, with the first leg in Gelsenkirchen before the return at the Nou Camp a week later.

The Spanish giants, champions in 2006, avoided four English clubs at the draw in Nyon, and director of football Begiristain admitted afterwards that his side had dodged a bullet.

"It is true that they [the Premier League] have invested a lot of money in football and you can see also they they are doing a great job.

"Because of that there are now four teams here. They are the strongest [league] in the world.

"The [English] style is very different. In Spain our style is very nice but it's not so brilliant to watch a Spanish league game.

"I believe that the Premier League is the strongest one."

Despite his obvious relief at avoiding one of the Premier League's big guns, Begiristain refused to underestimate last-eight opponents Schalke, who dispatched 2004 champions Porto on penalties in the last round.

He told Sky Sports News: "We have respect for Schalke as they beat Porto, who are a strong team. We have to be careful of that."

He added: "We are happy because in the second leg we play at home.

"We have an attacking style, we try to make goals, but also we need to have balance. We have to be strong up front but also strong in defence."

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