Kroos unhappy at facing Juventus in Champions League

The Germany international is full of respect for the Serie A champions, while Manuel Neuer is also wary of the Bianconeri but believes they can progress

Bayern Munich midfielder Toni Kroos feels that the Bavarians were unfortunate to be paired with Juventus in Friday’s draw for the quarter-finals of the Champions League.

Kroos believes that only Barcelona would have been a worse outcome, and has stressed that Bayern need two great performances if they are to reach the final four.

“Juventus knocked last year’s Champions League winners out of the competition at the group stage. It’s the least good draw after Barcelona,” Kroos told the official Bayern website.

“We’ll need two top performances to go through. It would be optimal if we won the first leg while keeping a clean sheet. Arturo Vidal has emerged as a top-class player with Juventus.”

Meanwhile, Manuel Neuer is full of respect for the Serie A champions as well.

“Juventus are a big name and a great team. Italian teams are always well organised, but I still think we definitely have a chance of going through.

“We’re looking forward to both games and we’re delighted to be starting at home.”

The first leg will take place at the Allianz Arena on April 2.

Barcelona to face Paris Saint-Germain, Bayern Munich to take on Juventus – the Champions League quarter-final draw in full

The Blaugrana are rewarded for their second-leg triumph against AC Milan with a last-eight tie against the French giants

Paris Saint-Germain will take on Barcelona in the standout tie of the Champions League quarter-finals after the draw at Uefa house in Nyon, Switzerland on Friday.

Barcelona, who won the competition in 2011 and overturned a 2-0 deficit to dump out AC Milan this season, will face Ligue 1 outfit Paris Saint-Germain with the first leg taking place in the French capital.

Last season’s finalists Bayern Munich face a tough clash with Serie A leaders Juventus in another huge fixture.

Primera Division champions Real Madrid are rewarded for their victory over Manchester United with a tie against Turkish giants Galatasaray, while Malaga, who knocked out Porto, take on German champions Borussia Dortmund.

The four first legs will take place on March, with the second legs scheduled for April 9 and 10.

The draw for the semi-finals will be held on April 12, and the tournament concludes at Wembley Stadium on May 25.

Criticism will benefit Bayern, says Muller

The versatile attacker is hopeful that the criticism in the wake of Bayern’s surprise-loss against Arsenal will spur them on again in the remainder of the season

Thomas Muller has admitted that Wednesday evening’s 2-0 Champions League loss against Arsenal was a blow for Bayern Munich, but believes they will benefit from the criticism they have received in the aftermath of the game.

The Bundesliga leaders appeared to have all but secured qualification for the quarter-finals after their 3-1 win in the first leg, but eventually only just scraped through on the away-goals rule.

“It feels pretty stupid. We all knew that we would still qualify if we lost 2-0, but we never even thought that was possible, perhaps that’s where it all went wrong,” Muller told Eurosport.

“It’s a good thing, though, that we have now endured a setback and are no longer living on cloud nine.

“This could another period where people approach us very critical. Both internally and in the press. That might help us get back to our usual best again.”

Bayern will be looking to return to winning ways on Saturday when they travel to Bayer Leverkusen.

Walcott blames first-leg mistakes for Arsenal's Champions League exit

Arsenal emerged from the Allianz Arena with their heads held high after a valiant 2-0 win over Bayern Munich on Wednesday, only to be knocked out on the away-goals rule

Theo Walcott insists Arsenal can only blame themselves for their Champions League exit after making costly mistakes during the first-leg tie against Bayern Munich.

Arsenal went into Wednesday’s second leg at the Allianz Arena with a 3-1 deficit after a tame showing at the Emirates Stadium left the club with little hope of qualifying for the quarter-finals.

However, a spirited Arsenal performance saw the Gunners valiantly fight to a 2-0 win, but exit on away goals, and Walcott believes the squad should be credited despite their exit from the competition.

“Our mistakes in the first leg cost us,” Walcott told reporters. “You can’t do that at the top level, but you have to give the guys credit for our away performance.

“We went out with pride, worked hard and worked for each other. We need to do that more often. It’s a weird feeling at the moment.

“Bayern are a top-class team. They can hit you on the break and they’re very well organised, but I felt we were very well organised too and we matched them all over the park. It just wasn’t meant to be. It was very difficult out there.”

Bayer Leverkusen-Bayern Munich Preview: Werkself chasing league double over Bavarians

Bayern Munich are expected to make two changes from the team that lost 2-0 at home to Arsenal in midweek. Bastian Schweinsteiger is available again after his continental suspension and will replace Luiz Gustavo in midfield.

Elsewhere, Mario Gomez could come back into the starting XI in the place of Mario Mandzukic, whose form has trailed off in recent weeks. Holger Badstuber remains sidelined, while Franck Ribery is lacking fitness.

Meanwhile, Leverkusen will be sweating over the fitness of Omer Toprak, who was forced out of the game against Stuttgart with a knee injury a fortnight ago, and missed the trip to Mainz.

The only absence is Karim Bellarabi, who is unfit, while Sebastian Boenisch may slot back in on the left-hand side of defence instead of Michal Kadlec.

  • Lars Bender (pictured, right) is set to make his 100th league appearance for Leverkusen after being handed his debut for the club by current Bayern coach Jupp Heynckes.
  • Heynckes had the same points-per-game rate at B04 as current co-coaches Sascha Lewandowski and Sami Hyypia.
  • Bayern Munich‘s 20-point lead at the top of the Bundesliga is the largest the division has ever seen.
  • The Bavarians are chasing a Bundesliga record 12th away win on Saturday.
  • A point at the BayArena would see them confirm their place in next season’s Champions League with eight games to spare.