Leon Goretzka says "Bayern Munich can beat anyone" ahead of Champions League quarter-final against Barcelona
Bayern Munich and Germany midfielder Leon Goretzka is in confident mood heading into the Bundesliga champions' UEFA Champions League quarter-final with Barcelona on Friday, hailing Hansi Flick's side "unbeatable" on current form.
Bayern brushed aside English Premier League side Chelsea 4-1 on Saturday to seal a dominant 7-1 aggregate win that sets up their meeting with the Spanish side.
It gave Flick's men even more reason to be confident as they go in search of becoming only the second team after Barcelona to twice complete a domestic league, domestic cup and Champions League treble.
As highlighted by midfield supremo Goretzka, who told a press conference from the club's training camp in Lagos: "I think we can beat every opponent."
The 25-year-old added: "Of course we know a very good team is waiting for us, peppered with world-class players, but we arrive with a broad chest that we've developed over the past nine months. Ultimately, we're already in a positive mood."
It's unsurprising that Goretzka's newly bulging physical frame is being metaphorically matched by his confident teammates - Bayern have now gone 27 games unbeaten in all competitions and won 26 of those matches, including each of their last 18.
In contrast, Barcelona had a disappointing end to their domestic campaign as they came up short of rivals Real Madrid in their own title-race, but a Lionel Messi-inspired performance saw them past Napoli last time out in the Champions League last 16.
Goretzka acknowledged that the Argentinian - who even himself can't match the output of Bayern's Robert Lewandowski this season - is an obvious threat, but not an unstoppable one, especially if Bayern keep operating as such an effective collective.
"[Stopping Messi] can only be done collectively, because he's a gifted footballer," he said. "At the moment, we're playing as a unit, in addition to the quality of the individual players, we have a clear plan in hand and our intensity without the ball can make the difference… We have to force our game on them."
Bayern take on Barcelona in Lisbon this Friday (kick-off: 9pm CEST/8pm BST/3pm ET), as the revamped 'final eight' tournament comes to a conclusion in Portugal.
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