Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard believes his side should “respect but not fear” Bayern Munich striker Harry Kane ahead of their Champions League quarter-final clash on Tuesday.
Mikel Arteta’s side advanced in the tournament after a sensational win over Porto in the last 16 and are now set to face the Bundesliga side in the first leg of the quarter-finals.
Midfield star Odegaard remains confident in their ability to earn a result, but admitted his side must be wary of Kane who, despite Bayern’s calamitous form of late, has 38 goals and 12 assists from just 37 appearances in all competitions this season.
“I think we should respect him, but I don’t think we should fear anyone,” Odegaard said of the former Tottenham striker. “And we should focus on ourselves and the quality we have in our team, and that is all.
“[Kane is] a good player, of course, and I have played against him a few times and we know the quality he has in the box and he is also good in the link-up [play]. We are facing a good team on Tuesday.”
Bayern come into the fixture after a disappointing set of results, suffering a 3-2 defeat at the hands of newly promoted Heidenheim on Saturday after being beaten by Borussia Dortmund just a week before.
They remain 16 points behind league leaders Bayer Leverkusen, who look set to secure silverware this season.
Kane played against Arsenal 19 times while at Tottenham in pressure-filled north London derbies. During this time, he scored 14 goals and won seven games, while the Gunners also won seven of these fixtures.
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