Morning all.
Arsenal’s record against Bayern Munich has really left a lot to be desired, so much so that I kind of get a feeling that as a club they don’t actually respect Arsenal that much. They don’t see us as a threat and don’t see us as being on the same level as themselves. In fact in the past, Bayern have tended to almost look down their noses at the Gunners, seeing us as a stepping stone to the next round and certainly not seen us as contenders. Even when we played them a couple of seasons ago there was a condescension from the Bavarians which I’m sure Mikel Arteta made a note of, not letting those feelings pass him by.
Arteta takes each game as it comes and with that in mind he freshened up the defence. Mosquera came in for the impressive Hincapie and Calafiori was replaced by Lewis-Skelly at left-back – tactical decisions of course as Bayern aren’t Tottenham and will bring many different problems for us to contend with. Odegaard made the bench alongside Martinelli and Madueke so the quality on the bench was as good as it gets.
The game kicked off with the rain drizzling down making the pitch even more slippery and Bayern soon settled into their confident Teutonic style as Arsenal found themselves pressed into their own half, a rare experience for the Gunners.
Kimmich set the pace doing the Zubimendi job for the Bavarians. It took a good 10 minutes for Arsenal to adjust, to get closer to their opponents and to start putting in the challenges to knock Bayern out of their stride. Bayern bossed most of the possession in the opening 20 minutes although Arsenal did threaten occasionally from set pieces.
Merino was feeding on scraps and Saka was being closed down, often unfairly by multiple Bayern players, the Italian referee showing a PGMOL interpretation far too often for my liking.
Then on 22 minutes an Arsenal corner caused some chaos in the German box and Timber headed home. Bayern looked stunned. This wasn’t in the script and for the next few minutes the Bavarians looked shaky.
On 32 minutes the Bayern wingers switched and we got caught out. A long diagonal pass by Kimmich found Serge Gnaby who easily outpaced Lewis-Skelly and his driven cross was side footed home for the equaliser. Nobody scores out of nothing quite like the German club and it knocked us back.
Arsenal were shaken and things could have really turned nasty but eventually the reds got back some equilibrium. On 37 minutes Leo Trossard went off with a suspected calf injury and Madueke replaced him and it was his trickery and pace which turned the momentum. It was unfortunate for Leo but maybe it worked in Arsenal’s favour?
There was a bit of a pinball scare in the Arsenal box and Arteta got booked for complaining after yet another foul on Saka but the half finished with the Germans probably feeling that the game was in their hands. Arsenal needed some magic from somewhere, an Eze moment or a Madueke dribble into the box but the lack of a cutting edge up front was more apparent than we have seen for a while. H/T 1-1.
I don’t know what Mikel Arteta said a half-time but Arsenal came out transformed and led by the dynamism and drive of Declan Rice, aided and abetted by Zubimendi who just grows with every game, Arsenal just went for Bayern’s throat and the Bavarians didn’t know how to respond and couldn’t increase their tempo.
Neuer tipped over from a Saka shot on 48, then on 55 a Saka cross was headed by Merino straight at Neuer then on 58 another Rice corner was driven into the box and Merino headed wide, unable to get a good contact. On 59 minutes a rattled Vincent Kompany got booked and we began to sense that the confidence of Bayern was just beginning to crack. On 60 minutes Rice yet again put in another pinpoint cross that Mosquera looked to have headed home but a big German hand from Neuer saved the day, all the same the Bavarians were rocking.
62 minutes and Rice drove into the Bayern half and straight at their goal leaving a trail of black shirts in his wake but once again Neuer, sporting a dodgy looking moustache, saved the day. Bayern then finally struck back and Michael Olise turned Myles inside out and almost broke our hearts and that was the signal for the change that won the tie. Arteta sent on Calafiori for Myles and Martinelli for the battered Saka on 68 minutes.
On 69 minutes Arsenal finally got their reward for going toe to toe with Bayern and showing that the Bavarians were not unbeatable. Declan Rice read a loose pass and from his interception he set Calafiori away and nobody was catching the Italian stallion. From his pinpoint driven cross Madueke arrived to fire home his first ever Arsenal goal and that’s when the Bayern hex was finally lifted.
We still had 20 minutes left but Bayern, whilst applying a little pressure, never really threatened despite a raft of substitutes. Calafiori shut down any threat from our left side and Timber was just the boss in charge on the right. Saliba and Mosquera were solid as a rock in between.
Bayern pushed on more around 76 minutes just looking for an equaliser and that’s when Michael Olise, trying to break into the Arsenal box, was dispossessed. The ball went to Eze who immediately saw the opportunity and he sent a beautifully weighted pass to Martinelli who had already sped away from the desperate Bayern defenders. Neuer tried to bring Gabby down but he skilfully knocked the ball past and ran past the flailing Bavarian goalkeeper and steered home the killer third goal sending the Emirates faithful into full party mode. The Arsenal had finally nailed the Bayern bogey.
Odegaard came on for Eze and Ben White for Timber on 80 which gave us the fresh legs to see it out. We came close to a 4th goal without quite pushing the envelope. It was what I sensed as a grown up European performance from a squad of players who are, given a fair crack, on the cusp of greatness.
We march on.
By Kev
Morning Kev, all.
Good post Kev, thank you.
What a result and what a great performance, especially in the second half.
Goodness knows where MLS confidence and concentration has gone.
Good morning Kev, excellent summing up.
For twenty minutes we were under the cosh, but this group of players don’t panic, they just stick to the game plan having the confidence and togetherness to ride out the storm.
Timber is developing into a more than adequate deputy to Gabriel when it comes to set pieces.
It was a tricky night for Lewis-Skelly, he looked a bit rusty and Trossard doesn’t provide the cover that Martinelli so often provides but he’s young and improving.
Am I right in believing that in the last two games there has not been a single Var intervention?
Moment of the night for me was Martinelli’s goal and the joy on his face after scoring it was priceless!
Good piece, Kev, right on point. MLS definitely needs game time. You could practice all you want, but there’s no substitution for actual games. He’s rusty, playing out of position and he’s young. Moreover, he was going up against Olise who does that on a regular basis, and with all his dominance, Olise didn’t get a shot on goal. That second half, wow. Chelsea would have no answer for a performance like that on Sunday.
Said on the old post, the media are talking about Chelsea beating Barca but I think they’ve forgotten Barca played half the game with ten men..
Hopefully the FA Cup draw will afford more game time for MLS and Nwaneri.
Morning Rico, yeah I enjoyed writing that one, Bayern have given us a lot of pain over the years so it was nice to put one over them.
Thanks Cicero, Arteta definitely made the subs at the right time as Myles was struggling and the Germans targets him. He does need games for sure or maybe more minutes off of the bench. Just growing pains for him I think.
Thanks Obi, I think that Myles did ok in general against Olise except for that last run by the Frenchman who turned him inside out, Calafiori just shut that threat down and added dynamism to the attack. How do you leave out the Italian for Myles especially with every game being crucial at this stage?
Myles can get turned by pace even when he’s on his A game and maybe not having Big Gabby alongside him didn’t help as he covers the space so well. The Kimmich pass was perfect and Gnabry is like a whippet.
Myles will be fine.
I bet you did Kev. I still can’t believe how easy this group of players made the win look. I think Arteta knew BM would start quickly and the plan was to absorb the pressure before raising our own tempo. As Obi suggested last night, that second half was the best an Arsenal team has played in a long time. Probably since the early Wenger years but to do it against the perceived best team in Europe was very special.
Rico, there are elements in the media starting to panic because it’s not good for the product to have Arsenal running away with it and they despise us anyway. So bigging up Chelsea is just their answer to Man City failing and Liverpool collapsing. If we beat Chelsea we go 9 points clear of them and even if City win, seeing us win at the Bridge will start to break their resolve.
Club Brugge (a) is possibly a chance for Arteta to rotate even more, I hope he gives a start to Nordgaard against Brentford in a few games time, gives Madueke a start against Chelsea and sits Saka down.
Yeah Rico, we’re not used to the opposition dominating like the Germans but we have an intelligent team and they adapted, didn’t panic as Cicero said and then took it up a level and the Jerries couldn’t live with us.
You know what Kev, the media stuff about Arsenal right now is pretty positive. Even the Mail were full of praise for what we’re doing this week. Carragher can’t say much as his team are really poor and Neville seems focussed on Amorim.
They may not like us but they’d look stupid to criticise what we’re doing right now.
Not bitter then… 😜
When asked if Arsenal were the best side Bayern had faced, Kimmich said to TNT Sports: “No, I don’t think so. I think PSG was the toughest one. Especially the way they play.
“Arsenal is completely different. They rely on set pieces. They love to play long balls. They love to fight for second balls. It was a completely different game against PSG. It was more of a football game.
“Today was not so much about football. It was more about game management and duels. Arsenal did this really well tonight. Their win was well deserved but we have to learn from this game.”
Good afternoon Rico and all
A very enjoyable post to read Kev. But you are going to have to up it a bit because we will only get better as the season goes by.
What did you say Rico??…..that ‘they may not like us but they’d look stupid to criticise what we’re doing right now.’ Are they intelligent enough to realize that they’d look stupid if they criticise what we’re doing?? I doubt that. You are so kind Rico.
Did anyone of you notice that the moment Rice took the armband his performance went up a notch?? He was already earned the MOTM by then but taking up the captain’s armband saw his leadership go further up. He unleashed his inner beast.
I have replayed Martinelli’s goal a thousand times by now…..and each time I enjoy it even more. BDW, Eze lifted his hands in celebration the moment Martinelli made Neuer look like a prized Chump. It still feels an awesome goal in its simplicity.
Afternoon Devil. They might be many things but stupid, I don’t think so. 😜
Fantastic performance,really enjoyed watching it and reading about here. It was fun to see Kane frozen out more than a Christmas turkey.
I agree the Martinelli goal was a beauty,classic Martinelli. The Timber one was great,seeing those Kimmich comments it’s really got to the Germans.
We have such a strong squad,only thing is finishing top doesn’t guarantee an easy draw, and anyway last season the eventual winners came from outside the top 8 anyway,so it’s got to be one game at a time.
It feels like 100% of non Arsenal fans want Chelsea to win Sunday. They can all do one.
As Kev pointed out, BM players always looked down on us when they were thumping us. Now it seems that they are not even gracious in defeat. So we cannot expect any compliment from them. Maybe, if we meet them again we should hammer it home so they might understand that they are being beaten by a better team.
I loved the Martinelli goal but the one which might have done the player a world of good is Madueke. Big boost before the weekend.
Limey, at this stage of the season no one wants to see a nine point lead open up. So it’s understandable from their point of view. But I side with you regarding us…we need to win as many as possible so that no one can contest or say anything if we win the EPL.
I just read that the Arsenal supporters have nicknamed Timber, Saka and Madueke as the Bible brothers due to their constant comments about their faith. While its amusing in itself its also a testament to their upbringing and how much their parents put across and instilled such good values.
Rico, those Kimmich comments made me smile, what else can you say when you have been so comprehensively outplayed as they were in the 2nd half?
You of course try to belittle the quality of the team that outplayed you and try to diminish their performance, it’s classic…
But Arteta will take note of those comments, he’ll remember that and use it further down the line if we face them again.
Tbh the response from Kimmich was typically German and it’s why Bayern are such a good team, they’re confident and a little arrogant but they’ve got the trophies and we haven’t – yet.
Arsenal are just more humble in our appraisal of the game and that’s to our advantage, keep a low profile and let others talk.
Dev, I like that our players are proud of their faith, it brings a unity to the squad and upsets communists and that’s always a good thing,
yes I agree Kev about that Kev. I like that as well and also the fact that they are proud about it and do not feel embarrassed to put forward their views and feelings about faith. I saw a clip in which Timber was asked about his posting of Bible Verses before every game and it seems like he has multitude of followers who see him as a role model and always look forward to his verse posting. That is good role modelling.
It will be interesting to see the line up on Sunday especially as it’s possible that we may be without Trossard . Whether Madueke or Martinelli gets the shirt will depend on whether the kicking Saka got leaves him doubtful to do the whole90 plus minutes. Skelly will have to back to the bench as Califiori is undroppable then it’s Vik for Merino or maybe give Chelsea a surprise if Havertz or Jesus are ready .
They made me laugh too Kev. They’d been thrashed and he knew it.
Agree re Calafiori, he’s in fantastic form and was probably didn’t start last night because of the Chelsea game. My guess is Arteta hoped MLS would play the 90..
Well Rico if Kimmich is short-sighted enough to think that Arsenal are just a set piece, long ball team then I can’t wait to play them again, the sooner the better. In fact I’d love to stuff them in the Allianz.
Kimmich’s comments is out of frustration. BM has always been a physical team, last night they got bullied badly. Saliba and Mosquera were walking Kane to wherever they want. Timber was rough housing anyone that came down on his side, and Rice and “Supermendi”, as Martin Keown was calling him last night, owned the middle.
The combination of physicality, technical abilities and mental strength on this team is incredible. I really have to give it to Arteta. I was very critical of his “man-management” in his first 2-3 seasons, but now he’s absolutely spot on. This is a ver different Arsenal team. Btw, Vincent Kompany was very complimentary of Arteta and the team in his post game interview.
Ditto Kev. It’s written in the stars that we’ll meet them again..
Totally agree re Arteta Obi, I had my doubts about him but together with the board, they nailed the summer and were doing well because of it.
As far as the next game is concerned, I think Martinelli will start as will Calafiori but with M L S to replace him after sixty minutes or so.
Depends on Trossard’s fitness perhaps but as you and others have pointed out, his defensive work is very good.