Arsenal: Arsene Wenger confident of upset against Bayern

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said on Monday (19 October) that his team will have to play with more intensity when they take on Bayern Munich in their pivotal Champions League Group F match in north London.

The Gunners have had a disastrous start to their European campaign, losing their first two matches against Dinamo Zagreb and Olympiakos Piraeus to lie bottom of the table, which their German opponents top with six points. Wenger admitted that in those games his side may have not had the same focus they have shown recently in the Premier League where they have risen to second place.

It is a game that we want to win because it is our next game. I believe as well we have some ground to make up in Europe because we have not been at our requested level in the first two games. Our focus has been much stronger in the Premier League than it has been in Europe. We know in this game the focus needs to be exactly the same as in the Premier League, he said.

Bayern have started the season in sensational form, winning all nine of their Bundesliga matches, so Wenger knows there is no danger of his players not being motivated for Tuesdays (20 October) match at the Emirates.

We have the belief and confidence that we are doing something right so that helps. But as well maybe we could be a little bit suspected of not having taken the first two games at the right level of taking the opponent seriously enough and this time thats not a threat. Lets take the positive so far of our Premier League and as well get the right focus that you get when you play a bigger opponent, Wenger said.

Arsenal will have to try to deal with the threat of Bayerns Robert Lewandowski, the Polish forward has scored 22 goals already for club and country this season, including 15 in his last seven matches. Wenger said Arsenal will have to get their balance right.

By being focused on both sides of our game. We know against Bayern they like to go forward, we like to go forward, so we want to attack well and defend well, he said.

All four English clubs have had setbacks in the Champions League this season, something Wenger attributes to the intensity of the Premier League.

All the English teams have some ground to make up. I believe that somewhere the concentration in the Premier League needs to be so high that sometimes it takes too much energy out of us, of the English teams. We want to do well in Europe and thats an opportunity to do it, all the English teams, he said.