North London Side Arsenal will welcome German Bundesliga side Bayern Munich to London with the first leg encounter of their quarter final clash set at the Emirates stadium later tonight.
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The UEFA Champions League quarter-final draw has set the stage for an exciting showdown between Arsenal and Bayern Munich, featuring the return of Bayern’s Harry Kane to North London for the first time since his departure from Tottenham last summer. Following Arsenal’s impressive 3-0 victory over Brighton on Saturday, Kane is well aware of the challenge ahead.
Arsenal is in the midst of a Premier League title race and has shown resilience, remaining unbeaten in seven competitive matches (W6, D1), including a penalty shootout win against Porto to reach this stage. They have been defensively solid in Europe, not conceding a goal in a Champions League home game this season (W4). However, Bayern’s last visit to the Emirates resulted in a 5-1 defeat for Arsenal back in March 2017.
Despite Bayern’s recent dominance in their head-to-head meetings, winning the last three encounters by a 5-1 scoreline, they are cautious after squandering a 2-0 lead in a 3-2 loss to Heidenheim. With a significant gap in the Bundesliga title race, Bayern sees the Champions League as their best chance for silverware this season.
Bayern’s resilience was evident in the round of 16, overturning a 1-0 deficit to defeat Lazio 3-1 on aggregate. Their only loss in this competition since last season’s defeat to Manchester City has been against Lazio. Notably, Bayern has a strong record in knockout away games against English clubs, with only one loss in their last seven such matches (W4, D2).
Key players to watch include Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka, who has been clinical from the penalty spot in recent appearances, and Bayern’s Harry Kane, known for his prolific record against Arsenal, averaging almost a goal contribution per game in his 19 appearances against them (14 goals, 3 assists).
Arsenal, however, faces a historical challenge, having lost their last four two-legged Champions League ties against German clubs, all of which were against Bayern.
