Zé Roberto backs Bayern

By Adrian Clarke

FC Bayern München may have gone 20 years without defeat on English soil, but winger Zé Roberto has warned Felix Magath's side they will still need to take a lead from tonight's game at the Olympiastadion into the return leg at Highbury in a fortnight's time.

Positive signs
Aside from their impressive away record, the Bundesliga leaders also have history in their favour going into their first-leg encounter with the Gunners - having won six and drawn four of their last ten matches against British opposition at their own stadium. But Brazilian midfield player Zé Roberto insists they must leave nothing to chance in this last-16 UEFA Champions League tussle.

Game plan
"We know if we are going to get past Arsenal then we will have to get a great result in Munich and hold them to a draw at Highbury," he told uefa.com. "I say this because we cannot be sure of beating them at their own stadium. I vividly remember playing at Highbury three years ago with [Bayer 04] Leverkusen when we were beaten 4-1 and it was a learning experience.

English welcome
"Playing in England is very different from the rest of Europe because the stadiums are like old fashioned arenas. The supporters help the English sides a lot at home - they are like having a 12th player. If visiting players are not ready to play teams like Arsenal and Manchester United [FC] it can be really dangerous."

High esteem
Despite having never reached the last four of the Champions League, Arsène Wenger's side are still viewed as one of the favourites to lift this year's crown. And Zé Roberto admits that Bayern hold the Premiership champions in equally high esteem.

German respect
He said: "We know that Arsenal don't have a big tradition in the Champions League like some other clubs do, but they are still a great team with world class players. In my mind they are still one of the favourites to win the competition. Arsenal are one of the most respected clubs here in Germany.

'Fast goals'
"In particular I think this Arsenal side are very dangerous when they break from midfield into attack. They are so fast with [Robert] Pires, [Patrick] Vieira and [Fredrik] Ljungberg feeding people like [Thierry] Henry and [Dennis] Bergkamp ahead of them. I also think that pitches are smaller in England, which helps Arsenal. They can defend easily and counterattack with a lot of speed on smaller pitches to great effect and in my opinion that is why we are used to seeing Arsenal scoring so many fast goals."

Championship credentials
Last season's Champions League campaign ended in disappointment for Bayern when they were eliminated by Real Madrid CF in the opening round of the knockout stage. But having beaten BV Borussia Dortmund 5-0 at the Olympiastadion at the weekend, Zé Roberto is confident that Magath's side are good enough to become European champions for the fifth time.

Strengthened squad
"I definitely think that Bayern are good enough to win the Champions League this year," he said. "We weren't at our best last year, but the club signed [Torsten] Frings and Lucio in the summer and they have had a great impact. We're well balanced and we have Roy Makaay in attack, who can create goals from anywhere."