Kompany wary of difficult Arsenal challenge
Bayern Munich sits top of the UEFA Champions League table at the halfway stage, but Vincent Kompany's seemingly unstoppable side faces the strongest defence in Arsenal next, and the head coach is wary.
Bayern has a 100 per cent record in the competition so far, but Arsenal is just behind the Bundesliga giant, having also won all four of its games so far.
Arsenal and Bayern were two of the four teams who did not trail at all across their opening four matches in the UEFA Champions League this season, along with Inter Milan and Manchester City.
This game will pit the best attack against the best defence, as Kompany's side has scored the most goals - 14, level with Paris Saint-Germain – while Arsenal has yet to concede.
Kompany acknowledged the magnitude of the tie and is excited to face off against Mikel Arteta's Premier League leader.
"We won our first four matches, which was important," he said. "So far, we've done what we set out to do, and we hope that this continues.
"But playing against this team will be the most difficult task we face at the moment. We're happy about that – that's why we're here, that's what we want."
On Arteta, Kompany added: "We coaches want to win trophies, of course, but we also see how teams need to be set up and trained. Few teams defend as well in the penalty area.
"When it comes to set-pieces, there are hardly any teams that are better organised. They've been together for a long time under Arteta, and you can see that.
"I'm looking forward to the challenge; we're also in a good phase."
Harry Kane has scored 15 goals in 21 career appearances against Arsenal, including six goals in 10 games against it at Emirates Stadium.
A former Tottenham Hotspur player, Kane has netted more goals as a visiting player at the venue than any other player.
Kane, however, has his eye on the trophy and believes Bayern has learnt from where it went wrong in previous seasons.
"Winning the [UEFA] Champions League would mean a lot to me," he said. "It would be incredible.
"We're one of the favourites. We learned a lot last season – for example, from the Barcelona game and how to press.
"Over the past eight or nine months, we've seen that we're much more consistent, much better. We've watched the games and see the Barcelona game as a turning point, as we learned a lot there."
