Arsenal pulled off the shocker of Matchday Three in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday, beating mighty Bayern Munich 2-0 in London to revitalize their European campaign.
Here are my three thoughts on what stood out about Arsenal’s big win.
A statement performance by Arsenal
It was a match they had to win. A draw would have kept them alive in the battle for second place in the group. But really, after dropping its first two games to modest Olympiacos and Dinamo Zagreb, Arsenal desperately needed three points to get back into contention and give them some hope at the halfway point of the group stage.
The task was daunting. Bayern is the best club in the world on current form, having won their previous 12 games in all competitions. Robert Lewandowski and Thomas Muller have been scoring for fun, the dynamic duo only making up a small faction of a German outfit that is essentially an all-star team comprised of some of the best players in the game today. Even with the game taking place in London, Arsenal had their work cut out right from the start. It would take a special effort to beat the Bavarians, even for a team that has won three straight in the Premier League.
Special is exactly what Arsene Wenger’s team were on Tuesday night, abandoning their trademark passing and possession game, and allowing Bayern to enjoy the majority of the ball and to call the tune. With two banks of four players lined up across the middle, Arsenal kept its shape and was defensively well-organized, cutting off the service to Lewandowski and Muller.
At the other end of the pith, Arsenal made the most of its chances, with Olivier Giroud scoring a scrappy goal just minutes after entering the game as a substitute, and Mesut Ozil padding the lead deep into injury time off a lovely cross from Hector Bellerin after catching the German on the counter.
Overall, it was an efficient performance by the Gunners, who for all of Bayern’s possession and dictating the pace of the game never had to chase it or were forced onto the back heel.
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Arsenal can win ugly
Okay, ugly is an overstatement, but we’re so used to seeing Arsenal trying to pass their way through teams as they attempt to walk the ball into the net.
This was a different Arsenal—one that was able to grind out a result that it absolutely needed. The Gunners were pragmatic in their approach, and showed great character and confidence in absorbing waves of pressure from the German champions, before catching them out on the quick counter.
Even as the game wore on and the need for a goal became more urgent, Arsenal remained patient, sticking to the game plan and not abandoning what had got them to that point, remaining confident that their chance would come. It did in the 77th minute when Bayern goalkeeper Manuel Neuer rushed off his line and failed to claim a free kick from Santi Cazorla, allowing Giroud to pounce.
This was a mature performance from Arsenal, something that Wenger can use as a reference point going forward—he need only remind his players of this game, and the manner in which they did they next time their confidence is low.
He can also use this as an example of there being more than one way to skin a cat. To wit: Bayern completed 338 passes in the first half compared to only 96 for Arsenal. But they both had four attempts on goal.
It doesn’t always have to be pretty, as long as it gets the job done.
That was the valuable lesson Arsenal learned on this night.
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That save by Manuel Neuer!
My goodness, that was some incredible save by Manuel Neuer to rob Theo Walcott in the 33rd minute. If you didn’t see it, go Google it right now. Seriously, it was THAT good.
Bayern dominated proceedings right from the opening kickoff with their passing game before the Gunners started to come alive after the half hour mark and exerted some pressure. A ball whipped from the flanks found an unmarked Walcott on the edge of the six-yard box, and the Arsenal man was so confident he was going to score that he began to peel away in celebration after heading it on goal.
Neuer, though, had other ideas, and he used great athleticism and strength to dive and claw away ball just before it crossed the goal-line and out of danger. Neuer’s heroics bailed Bayern out of trouble and kept Arsenal at bay for the time being, allowing the German side to go into the break tied at 0-0, instead of a goal down.