Bjorn: We don’t fear anyone

EUROPE captain Thomas Bjorn said his team “don’t fear anyone” as they prepare to take on a powerful United States line-up packed with nine major champions including a resurgent Tiger Woods at this week’s Ryder Cup.

“These are 24 of the best players in the world, and you know, when they go up against each other, they are all capable of amazing things on both sides,” Bjorn told reporters at a joint press conference with US counterpart Jim Furyk yesterday.

“We don’t fear anyone because we’ve played against them so many times before individually but we respect our opponents and know what we are up against. That I think is the key to all this.

“We’ll go out and do what we can and play our game. What stands on the other side we know is one of the strongest American teams of all time, and we know we’ve got to play our best to come up against this team.”

Bjorn meanwhile hailed wildcard pick Sergio Garcia as “integral” to his side’s hopes of lifting the trophy this week, after the Spaniard’s return to form in Portugal.

Former Masters champion Garcia was selected by Bjorn for the matchplay showdown despite a poor run which has seen him miss five straight cuts at major tournaments and slip to 28th in the world rankings.

But the 38-year-old played last week’s Portugal Masters in a final attempt to find form before the start of the Ryder Cup on Friday, and posted his first top-10 finish since July with a 6-under final round of 65.

“I was pleased for Sergio,” said Bjorn. “I think he felt like... he wanted to get out there and shoot some good numbers and feel good about himself on the golf course.

“I know what Sergio stands for and