Guardiola primed for ´final´ showdown with Olympiacos

Bayern Munich coach Pep Guardiola has labelled the Group F Champions League showdown with Olympiacos as “a final”.

The Bundesliga champions will guarantee top spot and a seeded place in the draw for the round of 16 with victory at the Allianz Arena on Tuesday.

Bayern’s only defeat in 20 matches across all competitions came against Arsenal in the Champions League – a result they emphatically avenged with a 5-1 win last time out – but Guardiola believes his players are in for a tough challenge against an Olympiacos side he identifies as being defensively sound and possessing pace in attack.

“We know how strong Olympiacos are,” he said. “They play good football.

“This game is a bit like a final for us. We can qualify for the next round as the top side in the group.

“They will not allow us much space, especially in front of their goal. Their wingers are very quick and they have some tall players too.

“We have to take the right decisions and we obviously want to score as early as possible. 

“Last season they qualified for the knockout stage. They have a lot of quality in their squad. That’s why I was very happy with our victory in Athens [on matchday one].”

Guardiola confirmed that David Alaba would again miss training on Monday due to an ankle injury, adding that a late decision would be made on the Austrian defender’s fitness.

“He won’t be training today, we’ll wait and see tomorrow,” he said.