Xabi Alonso admits he cannot wait to again be on the same pitch as long-time rival Frank Lampard this week.
The 32-year old Spanish midfielder now finds himself at Bayern Munich after a successful career with Barcelona where he had many encounters with Lampard during his Chelsea days.
Now the former England international is on loan at Manchester City, from MLS expansion franchise New York City FC, and Xabi is eagerly anticipating the Champions League meeting between Bayern and the reigning Premier League champions at the Etihad Stadium on Tuesday night.
"It is going to be strange to play against him and not be playing Chelsea," Alonso said.
"He had a great career for Chelsea and he has been one of the most important players in the Premier League in the last years.
"We have had fewer ties (recently) but we have good relations and I wish him best of luck with his next stage. We are great competitors in football."
Xabi also suggested that perhaps Bayern can play with a little less stress in their minds after already securing their spot in the Round of 16 by sewing up Group E with four straight victories.
"We can enjoy it. We had competitive games in the league, Champions League, FA Cup, in semi-finals," he added.
