Wenger: Bayern less dangerous than Real

UEFA Champions League holders Bayern beat Wenger's Arsenal side 2-0 last month in the first leg of their last 16 tie at the Emirates Stadium.

Bavarian giants Bayern won an historic treble last season under Jupp Heynckes and are also sweeping all before them in the current campaign.

The defending champions are 20 points clear at the top of the Bundesliga, as well as having one foot in the quarter-finals of Europe's premier club competition and already being crowed FIFA Club World Cup champions.

But despite their ominous form, Wenger believes that Bayern carry less of a threat under Pep Guardiola than they did in the 2012-13 campaign - particularly with key men Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben having been troubled by injuries.

He told Eurosport: "Last year, Ribery and Robben were playing together and they were in great shape, so Bayern were really powerful going forward,

"This year they still have an awful lot of possession, but I think they're less dangerous - I think we saw that at Arsenal. Even though we were playing with 10 players (following the sending off of Wojciech Szczesny) they didn't really create an awful lot."

Real hammered Schalke 6-1 last week, are top of La Liga and in the Copa del Rey final in Carlo Ancelotti's first season at the Spanish club

And Wenger has seen enough of the Spanish side to think of them as contenders to win the Champions League trophy for the first time since 2002.

The Frenchman said: "Real Madrid right now are on a par with anything. For me, this is the team with the best balance."