UEFA Champions League Quarter Finals: Arsenal-Bayern Munich Draw At Emirates (Image: twitter.com/Arsenal)
Arsenal vs Bayern Munich at Emirates in the first leg of UEFA Champions League quarterfinals give away the feelings and memories of two earlier matches happened in the last decade, not the one starting from 2020s, but the one before that. One such match was when the Bavarians outperformed the Catalans FC Barcelona in the 2012/13 Champions League semi-finals, and another was the second leg of 2011/12 Champions League semi-finals in which the Blues Chelsea outperformed, again, the Catalans.
Many football pundits would agree that the FC Barcelona of the Pep Guardiola era was one of the best sides in the modern football history. What helped them to have the glory days was the style of football they played with the fantastic trio with Messi-Iniesta-Xavi. Possession was their main highlight.
Arsenal today have enjoyed a fantastic possession statistics, and denied the goal scoring advances as the Bayern Munich defense, a layered defense, stood as rock in front of the branched out Arsenal offensive. Same happened in the Barcelona vs Chelsea Match in 2012. The Londoners then “parked the bus” in front of the catastrophic Barcelona attacks and finally, when the time came Fernando Torres was seen cruising past like an Arabian horse in the pitch, and that goal sealed their place in the finals.
Levelling it 🆙 pic.twitter.com/ZpMSlt2llP
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) April 9, 2024
If Arsenal had a faced a challenge today, it was this rock-like, layered defense Bayern Munich established in front of the goal area that denied the Gunners proper openings. When they got the opening, the North Londoners delivered to draw. Arsenal had the possession, but, Bayern Munich had the will to stop them at any cost.
