'Only Barcelona are better than Juventus' - Salihamidzic

Only Barcelona are better than Juventus, says Salihamidzic

19-Mar-2013 1:05:00 AM

The former Bianconeri and die Roten winger believes his former Italian side are the second-best team in the world, after the Bavarians drew them as their quarter-final opponents

Ex-Juventus and Bayern Munich winger Hasan Salihamidzic feels the Old Lady are currently only topped by Barcelona as the world's best side.

The Serie A title holders will face Jupp Heynckes' men in the quarter-finals of the Champions League, and the Bosnian footballer has labelled Antonio Conte's men as the favourites for the clash.

"Barcelona are above any other team. In second place, for me, is Juve," the 36-year-old told Bild.

"Bayern will have to bring a top performance two times. I would have wished for an easier opponent for now, it hardly could have been any more difficult.

"Juventus have been on a roll for the past two years, they hardly lose any matches.

"Their defence with former Wolfsburg centre-back [Andrea] Barzagli, [Leonardo] Bonucci and [Giorgio] Chiellini are absolutely top-class.

"I don't see any weaknesses at the moment. They play a perfect 3-5-2 system and also have a world-class midfield with [Andrea] Pirlo, [Claudio] Marchisio and [Arturo] Vidal.

"Ex-[Bayer] Leverkusen player Vidal is responsible for the rhythm. If he's in form, Juve win. He has developed even further after departing from the Bundesliga two years ago."

Bayern Munich's first-leg quarter-final clash against Juventus will be kicked off on April 2, 20.45CET at the Allianz Arena.