Muller: Ozil perfect fit for Arsenal

The forward says Bayern Munich will aim to stop his “lively” Germany team-mate in Tuesday’s crucial Champions League clash with Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium


Mesut Ozil is excelling at Arsenal because the playmaker “perfectly fits” the Gunners’ style of play, according to Bayern Munich star Thomas Muller.

After two mixed seasons in North London, Ozil has been in sublime form this term and boasts six assists in eight Premier League matches – the joint most with Manchester City’s David Silva. 

The Germany international will come face to face with a number of his compatriots when Arsenal host Bayern in Tuesday’s crucial Champions League encounter and Muller is not surprised by the form of his international team-mate. 

“Mesut is very lively,” Muller told Arsenal Player.

“His left foot is outstanding and he’s always got a great eye for a pass to a team-mate. His style of play fits perfectly to Arsenal’s game. That’s why he plays a good role there.”

After defeats to Dinamo Zagreb and Olympiakos in their opening two Champions League matches, Arsenal’s hopes of reaching the last-16 are hanging by a thread ahead of Bayern’s visit.

The Bavarians, meanwhile, have won both of their opening matches and a record nine straight Bundesliga since the start of the season.

Muller, however, is wary of the threat posed by Arsenal ahead of their trip to London, particularly with Ozil among the Gunners’ armoury.

“Mesut can hurt anyone, especially in London, where I see Arsenal as being a tick stronger than when they play away. We need to prevent Mesut from playing those dangerous passes in the final third.”

Muller’s importance to Bayern Munich underlined once again

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Robert Lewandowski has been dominating the headlines at Bayern Munich of late, and rightly so.

The prolific Pole has been in breathtaking form, netting 12 times in four outings heading into a weekend meeting with Werder Bremen.

He had also been among the goals for his country during the international break, with many picking him out as the most fearsome forward in world football.

The 27-year-old certainly deserves to be in that company, having proved himself over a number of years.

Lewandowski is, however, merely one ace in a whole pack of them at the Allianz Arena.

It is easy to stand out when surrounded by such talent, with Bayern once again looking like they will be the dominant Bundesliga force in 2015/16, while football betting markets also have them well fancied to go deep in the UEFA Champions League.

Goals will be vital to domestic and continental quests, and Lewandowski can be relied upon to supply plenty of those.

It is not difficult to argue, though, that Thomas Muller will be as important, if not more so, to Pep Guardiola’s cause.

In a galaxy of stars, it is easy for the contribution of the World Cup winner to be overlooked.

Yes, he has won it all and is a man rightly held up as one of the finest performers in the global game, but how many times is held up as being the main man?

He has been operating in Lewandowski’s shadow of late, and that is a position the unassuming forward will be happy to adopt.

Going about his business while often sailing under the radar is what he does best.

Bayern are, however, fully aware of his value and fought hard over the summer to fend off reported interest from Manchester United – having already seen Bastian Schweinsteiger depart for Old Trafford.

Recent comments from Muller, in which he admitted the riches on offer in the Premier League would be tempting for any player, will have concerned those in the corridors of power, but he remains an integral part of their plans for now.

The 26-year-old is the toast of Bayern once again at present, with his solitary strike against Bremen on Saturday enough to secure a record-breaking 1-0 win – with Guardiola’s side having now opened the season with nine straight successes in the league, and achievement no team has managed before them.

In netting his ninth goal of the Bundesliga campaign, Muller actually pulled level with Lewandowski in one important scoring statistic.

While his teammate has hit a rich vein of form over recent weeks, his domestic efforts have come in six games – while also finding the target in one European outing.

Muller now boasts a record comparable to that.

He may not have as many goals to his name overall, but he too has breached six Bundesliga defences and one Champions League back line.

The energetic frontman also boasts a useful knack of breaking the deadlock, having achieved that feat for a fourth time over the weekend – Lewandowski, meanwhile, has netted the first goal of any given game just once, with even his five-effort salvo against Wolfsburg coming from 1-0 down.

Muller is clearly a man for all occasions and should be expected to maintain his impressively high standards over the course of an entire campaign – one which promises to deliver another enviable collection of silverware to Bavaria’s finest.

Will Wenger recall Giroud? How Arsenal will line up against Bayern Munich

The Frenchman scored as a substitute but is unlikely to return to the side, while Petr Cech will start in goal


GOAL By Greg Stobart


Olivier Giroud came off the bench and scored in Saturday’s win at Watford – but it’s unlikely to be enough for the striker to force his way in to the Arsenal side that will start against Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Tuesday night.

Theo Walcott is expected to continue as the Gunners’ central striker in a must-win game for the club’s hopes of progressing to the knockout stages of the competition after defeats in their opening two European fixtures.

Petr Cech will start his first Champions League game for Arsenal in place of the injured David Ospina, who would have lost his place regardless after his howler against Olympiakos.

Arsene Wenger is ready to name an unchanged team to the starting XI that faced Watford, which means Gabriel will have to settle for a place on the substitutes bench despte recovering from a minor illness.

For Bayern Munich, the game in north London comes too soon for Arjen Robben and the Dutchman is joined on the sidelines by Mario Gotze, Franck Ribery and Mehdi Benatia.

In-form striker Robert Lewandowski appeared to suffer a slight knee injury in the win over Werder Bremen at the weekend but will lead the line for the German champions.

Arsenal underestimated teams in the Champions League, admits Bellerin

The Gunners are bottom of Group F after defeats to Dinamo Zagreb and Olympiacos and now face two games against Bayern Munich


Hector Bellerin admits the reason behind Arsenal’s failure in the Champions League this season is because they “underestimated” Dinamo Zagreb and Olympiacos.

The Gunners sit bottom of Group F following defeats in Croatia and at home to the Greek champions, while they face Bayern Munich at the Emirates Stadium on Wednesday.

“We have underestimated some of our rivals,” Bellerin told Marca.

“For one reason or another we haven’t started in the Champions League this season. Now we have two games against Bayern, but we have to score if we want to reach the next round.”

Alexis Sanchez has been pivotal to Arsenal’s recent form with seven goals in his last four games but Bellerin admits he is unsure where the Chilean ranks alongside Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

“It’s very difficult to say if he’s at their level but he’s close,” said the right-back.

“When he gets the ball you know it’s likely to be a goal.”

Lewandowski: Goals alone do not impress Guardiola

The Bavarian star discussed his relationship with the Catalan coach, who still constantly demands improvements from him

Robert Lewandowski insists his remarkable scoring feats for Bayern Munich have not seen him earn preferential treatment from coach Pep Guardiola, who the striker says expects more than just goals.

The prolific Poland international has netted an impressive 12 strikes in eight Bundesliga appearances so far this campaign, while his record for club and country combined in all competitions this season – 22 goals in only 16 games – makes for even better reading.

But Lewandowski is adamant Guardiola does not rate him based on his marksmanship alone, and states the Catalan constantly urges him to be more than just a goalscorer.

“I don’t think the coach approaches me differently when I score more goals. It’s the same. I’m sure he is happy with my goals, but he also wants me to play good football and help my team-mates,” the 27-year-old told Uefa‘s official website.

“I know that I don’t have to score in every single game for the coach to be happy with my performance. Sometimes my movements on the pitch are more important for him, like how I exploit the space and how I perform overall. 

“Goals not only help me, but the whole team. They’re something the coach doesn’t just expect from me. I am not a striker who is only waiting in the penalty box to score a goal. I move, make passes and look for opportunities for others.”

Lewandowski will be looking to return to scoring form when Bayern visit Arsenal in the Champions League on Tuesday, after his failure to find the back of the net in Bayern’s 1-0 win at Werder Bremen at the weekend brought a halt to his four-game scoring run for his club.