Arsene Wenger today issued a defiant message to Arsenal's European rivals by insisting his young guns fear no one and have matured into a team capable of winning the Champions League.

The Gunners begin their Group G campaign with a trip to Dynamo Kiev, where they were last night greeted by driving rain and a traffic jam that makes London's rush hour look like a lazy country drive.

Despite the interruption to their preparations, Wenger arrived in bullish mood with Saturday's 4-0 thrashing of Blackburn still fresh in the memory.

It seems like an eon ago that Arsenal were being written off for honours and too lightweight and inexperienced after that tame Premier League defeat at Fulham.

Eleven goals without reply was the Gunners' emphatic response and Wenger sees no reason why they cannot take that self-belief onto Europe's grandest stage.

"We are happy to play football - we are afraid of nobody in the world," said the Arsenal manager.

"We are in better shape than three weeks ago because many players came back late from the European Championships and it took us a while to get going.

"Now everybody looks physically ready to play at the top level. But we respect Dynamo Kiev because their strength is that they are very efficient as a team."

Indeed, this is unlikely to be a stroll in the park, despite the facile nature of Manchester United's 4-2 victory in the Ukrainian capital less than a year ago.

Arsenal have a shocking record in the old Soviet Bloc, having lost five games against Kiev (twice), Spartak Moscow, Shahktar Donetsk and CSKA Moscow in the last 10 years.

Kiev were impressive in seeing off Spartak in the third-qualifying round 8-2 on aggregate and the manner of their victory was not lost on Wenger. "To knock Spartak Moscow out and score eight goals, that is one advantage - it will keep us on our toes because that is a remarkable performance," he said.

"What is important is that we play well. At the stadium, they get a big support. We have enough experience to deal with that but when you go into a game like that it's important to play as close to your full potential. In a Champions League game, you don't get away with less."

A gruelling 2,660-mile round trip sandwiched between Premier League away games is far from ideal but Emmanuel Adebayor is certain the Arsenal players will be giving their full commitment.

The striker's own Champions League heartache is inspiring him to win Europe's top prize.

The Togo star watched from the stands as the Gunners were beaten in the 2006 final by Barcelona as he was cup-tied following a move from Monaco.

Adebayor was an unused substitute as the French side lost to Jose Mourinho's Porto a year earlier and claims he is using those experiences as an incentive.

"That is what I have said to myself," said Adebayor, who scored his first league goals of the season - and his 50th for Arsenal in all competitions - as he netted a hat-trick in the 4-0 hammering of Blackburn last Saturday.

"I have every chance to win the Champions League with Arsenal. I couldn't play back in 2006. Now I have a chance to play, so there's an argument for me to be more hungry than most of my teammates. But I'm not the only one. Cesc [Fabregas] lost in the final as well and Kolo [Toure], so all these players would like to win it in their career.

"I don't know whether we're going to win the Champions League or the Premier League but we have to achieve something because we have the quality within the squad.

"We just have to believe in ourselves to do it. After the World Cup and European Championships, the Champions League is the highest level of competition, so these are the things that give you the highest motivation."