Bayern Munich full-back Willy Sagnol believes the German giants still have a long way to go before they can challenge for the Champions League.

Bayern lead the Bundesliga by four points and are in the semi-finals of the DFB-Pokal and last 16 of the UEFA Cup.

Coach Ottmar Hitzfeld predicts his team are ready to challenge in the Champions League but Sagnol disagrees, citing a lack of experienced players as their hindrance.

"(Franck) Ribery, (Luco) Toni and (Jose Ernesto) Sosa - none of them have ever played in the Champions League yet and experience is very important there," Sagnol said in Kicker magazine.

"We are still a long way behind Milan."

AC Milan were the last side Bayern faced in Europe's elite competition almost 12 months ago when a 2-0 defeat at the Allianz Arena sent them out of the competition after drawing 2-2 at the San Siro.

If Bayern are to win the next duel with the Italian giants, or any other big name in European football, Sagnol believes further reinforcement is required before Jurgen Klinsmann takes over in the summer.

"Maybe we need one or two established players, then we could compete with the best," added the 30-year-old

"We lack a battler. If we only play beautifully, then we will have no success."

Bayern last won the Champions League with Stefan Effenberg as their captain but since he left the club in 2002, they have not quite been able to find a similar leader on the field, although Mark van Bommel is doing his best to emulate the German.

It may be Sagnol himself who leads the players on the field as he will inherit the captain's armband when Oliver Kahn retires in the summer.

Sagnol, who requested a transfer in November, now feels happy to still be at the club after fighting his way back into the team.

He said: "I still have two more years on my contract with Bayern and I will end my career here.

"I can imagine playing for another three or four years and I still feel too young to be talking about retirement."

Teamtalk / Eurosport