Pep Guardiola guarded despite his dominance over Real Madrid
Current Bayern boss held the upper hand over Real when he was coach at Barcelona, but says he has 'too much respect' to take them lightly
The last thing Real Madrid wanted was another Champions League semi-final clash against Bayern Munich but on Wednesday night they will need to get the better of a familiar foe who very much appears to have their number.
Pep Guardiola, whose Bayern side play their last-four, first leg at the Bernabeu, was appointed as coach of the German champions at the end of last season after taking a year out to recover from a trophy-laden but draining four years in charge of Real's arch-rivals Barcelona.
During his time as a Barca player and coach, Guardiola seldom tasted defeat against the Madrid club and his all-conquering team dispatched Real in the last four of Europe's elite club competition in 2010-11 before going on to win the final against Manchester United.
Every time I have gone to the Bernabeu, as a player and as a coach, I have never in my head gone there as the favourite
His coaching record against Real was an impressive nine wins, four draws and two defeats, while as a player in 14 La Liga meetings he won six, drew five and lost only three.
Despite having the statistics firmly on his side, Guardiola is too wily to take Real lightly and he will know how desperate the Spaniards are to win the record-extending 10th European crown they have been chasing since their last continental triumph in 2002.
They will also be itching to avenge their last-four reverse to Bayern in the 2011-12 season, when the German side went through on penalties after the tie ended 3-3 on aggregate but lost to Chelsea in the final.