JUPP Heynckes, the Bayern Munich manager, last night denied the German giants are taking their place in the last 16 of the Champions League for granted and stressed his players will not make the mistake of underestimating Celtic.
Bayern are fourth favourites to win Europe’s premier club competition and are expected to triumph comfortably in their third Group B match against the Scottish champions in the Allianz Arena this evening.
However, Heynckes, who returned for a fourth spell in charge of the Bavarian outfit when Carlo Ancelotti was sacked earlier this month, believes their opponents are capable of beating his side tonight as well as pipping them to second spot in the section and progressing to the knockout rounds.
The 72-year-old is a veteran of many encounters with Scottish sides over the years both as a player with West Germany and Borussia Moenchengladbach and as the manager of that Bundesliga club and their great rivals Bayern.
He knows his team, beaten 3-0 by Paris Saint-Germain in France last month in what proved to be Ancelotti’s last game in charge, will have to be at their very best this evening as well as in their remaining group games to go through.
"Celtic are a physical, aggressive team,” he said. “They have the won Scottish Premiership six times in a row. In the Champions League last season, they drew twice against Manchester City and Borussia Monchengladbach away. That tells you everything you need to know.
"Celtic are a very good, positive team. That is normal in the Champions League and we have to be well prepared. You shouldn't make the mistake of underestimating other teams.
"Celtic are a very competitive, experienced team with a great coach who was at Liverpool. People forecast that Bayern and PSG are the favourites, but you need to play these games and then evaluate.
“Yes, we want to qualify for the next round. But Celtic have a great history in Europe and I would never make the mistake of underestimating Celtic. I think that within the Champions League, there is the possibility to lose a match. We lost to Arsenal a few years ago so it’s nothing new.”
Heynckes, whose professional football career has now stretched for more than half a century, first encountered a Scottish team when he played and scored for Moenchengladbach in a UEFA Cup game against Aberdeen at Pittodrie in 1972.
When the forward moved into management and took over at his home town club he failed to oversee wins in two meetings with Dundee United in the UEFA Cup, first in 1981 and again in the semi-finals in 1987.
Read more: Stewart Fisher: Why can't Brendan Rodgers manage Scotland as well as Celtic?
When he joined Bayern for his first stint in the dugout in Munich he enjoyed more success – his men beat Hearts in the quarter-finals of the UEFA Cup in 1989 and then Rangers in the old European Cup later that year.
However, Heynckes, who is, along with Ancelotti, Ernst Happel, Ottmar Hitzfeld and Jose Mourinho, one of only five managers to triumph in the Champions League with two different clubs, having won the tournament with both Bayern and Real Madrid, feels it is more difficult than ever for clubs from this country to compete on the continent.
“I have memories as a player against Aberdeen, but that was nearly 40 or 50 years ago” he said. “I have also coached against Dundee United, Hearts and Rangers as well.
“Scottish football has had highs and lows and difficulties, including at an international level, but it they have always had a way to play football that has had success. They brought out a lot of star players as well.
“But I think that if you look at Scotland now it’s always difficult to maintain a high level and to be competitive in the Champions League and make it past the group stage, because if you look at the transfer window you see how crazy it has become and how difficult it is even for well-established teams and clubs to keep up their momentum.
“Look at Paris, or the English teams. They just invest in horrific numbers. Manchester City and Manchester United invested a lot of money, 600 million euros, that’s just crazy. Clubs like Celtic and others like Anderlecht can’t keep up.”
Heynckes, who is confident he has enough strength in depth to cope with the loss of midfielder Javi Martinez tonight, has confessed that Bayern’s objective this season is to win the Champions League for a sixth time even though he has just returned as manager.
“We have great ambitions in this competition and it would be good to show the same performance as we did against Freiburg (Bayern won a league game 5-0 at home on Saturday),” he said.
“We can maybe even show we have improved in some way. We have analysed the game and were very critical about some things, but we can’t lament on that.
“It’s not easy when a new coach comes in, but I do have the advantage that I know the club very well. We have trained very well in the heat in Munich. It helps and it feels like spring. The players have presented themselves very well.”
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