Zé Roberto's Bayern ambition

By Julio Gomes Filho

One of the undisputed stars of the 2001/02 UEFA Champions League season with Bayer 04 Leverkusen, Brazil winger Zé Roberto has been a less prominent figure in Europe since his move to German giants FC Bayern München.

European fortunes
With Bayern bowing out at the end of the first group stage in 2002/03 and then coming a cropper against Real Madrid CF in the first knockout round last season, Zé Roberto has had less chance to demonstrate his skills in the Champions League than he would have liked in recent years.

Bright start
However, as Felix Magath's side travel to Juventus FC, Bayern are looking bright, with wins in both of their opening games in Group C seemingly setting them on course for a place in the last 16. Zé Roberto is certainly confident that his side can achieve something this season.

Bold ambition
"I think we can win everything this year," he told uefa.com. "There are top-class teams like Real Madrid [CF], [FC] Barcelona, [AC] Milan, Arsenal [FC] and others in the Champions League, but unlike last season I can now see my team being able to challenge them. I hope we can beat all these great teams."

Coaching change
As yet, all the erstwhile José Roberto da Silva Junior has to show from his time at the Olympiastadion is the German double the club won in 2002/03, but with Bayern showing much more fluidity since Magath took over from Ottmar Hitzfeld, Zé Roberto has had good reason to feel comfortable in the Bayern squad.

'Happy ending'
"I still don't know Magath all that well, but it is just the beginning," said the 30-year-old, who scored Bayern's fourth goal in the 4-0 win against AFC Ajax on Matchday 2. "He is a hardworking coach and the start of the season couldn't have gone much better. We hope to see a happy ending as well."

Squad changes
While Zé Roberto is happy to give Magath credit for Bayern's form, he has also been pleased with the additions made to the squad by the club's board over the summer. "Now I think we have a competitive team to regain supremacy in the Bundesliga and fight for the Champions League trophy," he said.

Key reinforcements
"Our directors have done well," added the Brazilian, who joined Bayern along with Michael Ballack in the summer of 2002. "We had problems in our defence last season so they brought in Lúcio from Leverkusen. Besides that, the arrival of Torsten Frings from [BV] Borussia Dortmund is really important for us."

Turin test
The proof of how effective those changes have been may well come tonight as Bayern travel to Turin to face a Juventus side who have also won both of their games. Juve top Serie A and are yet to lose this season, while Bayern lost their last match, 1-0 at home against FC Schalke 04.

Brazilian ambitions
None the less, Zé Roberto has plenty of reasons to want to prove his worth against the Italian side. He is keen to impress Brazil coach Carlos Alberto Parreira and outstrip Arsenal's Edu for the privilege of playing on Brazil's left flank at the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany.

New deal
Moreover, with his Bayern contract expiring this summer, Zé Roberto is keen to earn a new one. "I am really settled in Germany and playing regularly at a club like Bayern is a privilege," he said. Should he help Bayern win in Turin, the club will doubtless feel privileged to be able to offer him a new deal.