Thomas Tuchel exclusive: Arsenal 'are the benchmark' ahead of UEFA Champions League clash - 'I can feel the electricity'
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Updated 09/04/2024 at 12:59 GMT+1
Thomas Tuchel is wary of facing Arsenal following their meteoric rise under Mikel Arteta, as Bayern Munich travel to north London on Tuesday to face the Gunners in the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals first leg. Tuchel feels Arteta's side "are the benchmark" in Europe. “They produce outstanding numbers, they produce outstanding performances. I can feel the electricity," he told TNT Sports.
‘They are the benchmark’ – Tuchel wary of ‘outstanding’ Arsenal threat
Thomas Tuchel says he “can feel the electricity” at Arsenal following their meteoric rise under Mikel Arteta, as Bayern Munich prepare to take on the Premier League leaders in the UEFA Champions League.
The German champions travel to Emirates Stadium on Tuesday for the first leg of Bayern and Arsenal’s mouth-watering quarter-final tie, which is live on TNT Sports and discovery+.
Arsenal come into the match on an 11-game unbeaten run domestically - where they have won 10 of those matches - which has shot them to the top of the Premier League table.
Bayern arrive in the English capital in contrasting form. They have lost their last two league matches and slipped 16 points behind Bundesliga leaders Bayer Leverkusen.
Meanwhile, Arteta has guided Arsenal to the last eight of the competition for the first time in 14 years, and Tuchel believes the Gunners are now “the benchmark” in Europe.
“We play against the leaders of the Premier League, the most difficult league in the world, and their numbers in the Champions League are impressive as well,” Tuchel told TNT Sports.
“They are the benchmark in many, many parts of their game. We need to show up and show our best face.”
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Tuchel agreed that there were a lot of motivating factors ahead of Tuesday’s blockbuster clash.
“Yes, there are, if you don’t [think that] then you are in completely the wrong place,” he said.
“For all the work Mikel has put into this team and the club has put into this team, you see it, you see the handwriting all over it.
“They produce outstanding numbers, they produce outstanding performances and that’s what you live for. I can feel the tension and the electricity.”
Looking ahead to the game, Tuchel feels they have a “lucky charm” in former Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane, who is “desperate” to score against his old rivals.
Kane comes into the match boasting a fantastic record in front of goal against Arsenal from his time at Spurs, having scored 14 goals in 19 appearances against the Gunners in all competitions.
The Premier League’s second-highest goalscorer of all time did not take long to find his feet overseas either, and in his debut campaign has found the back of the net 38 times in Germany.
Kane will return to London for the first time since his £100 million move to the Bundesliga and Tuchel said he is “very ambitious” to make it a goalscoring return.
“I think he is desperate to score, he’s happy to score,” Tuchel told TNT Sports with a wry smile.
“We are very happy that he’s in our team against the Gunners, he can be our lucky charm because he has scored a lot against them.
“He is, of course, very ambitious to score against them. Harry will always help your team to win and this is what he will try and hopefully succeed.”
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The UEFA Champions League is Bayern's last realistic chance of silverware after a disappointing season.
They were knocked out of the DFB Pokal in the second round to third-tier side Saarbrucken, and are about to concede their 11-year dominance of the Bundesliga title to Leverkusen.
Tuchel is frustrated there is not more on the line for Bayern, but feels they must be realistic about how they have played this season.
“I like to be focused on as many trophies as possible, but that’s the way it is,” he admitted.
“It helps if we face reality. The reality is, we lacked consistency in the Bundesliga, we lacked hunger, we lacked intensity throughout the matches. That’s just the way it is. We have to face it.
“[The UEFA Champions League] is a different competition, we are in the quarter-finalists. This is what we expect, what I expect from myself.
“But now we are here it’s only about showing our top level and showing the best version of yourself, showing character and grit. If you’re playing at Arsenal, you know you’ve reached the highest level.”
Ex-Man City winger Leroy Sane will also come up against a familiar face in Arteta, after playing under him in Manchester as Pep Guardiola’s assistant.
Sane revealed there “are still things in his head” which Arteta told him during his City days, and that he always knew he would become a top coach.
“We had a really strong relationship,” Sane told TNT Sports.
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“He helped me a lot when I was a bit younger. We had lots of individual training together. He helped me a lot and generally, you could tell how he has a view for football.
“[Under Pep Guardiola], he learned a lot and got a different view too. At the end, you could tell if he gets it over to his players then they will do a great job, like you see it. He’s doing a great job and I’m really happy for him.”
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