Champions League: Can Arsenal Actually Beat Bayern?

The most interesting and standout tie of the round has to be Arsenal having to face Bayern Munich yet again. Hold your ponies, this isn't the tie of the round because of two heavyweights going against each other, and this being a hard one to call that can swing either way.

Nope.

It's purely because Arsenal, who are the overwhelming underdogs, do at least have a chance and a path to toppling Bayern, however unlikely it may be.





Let's deal with the reality. Bayern Munich are substantially the better team. From front to back, they are superior to Arsenal. Bayern also have better individual talent. Apart from Alexis Sanchez, and Ozil on his best day, no other Arsenal player could get into Bayern's first team.

Bayern may not be swooning and confident as they were under Pep, but even if they are not at full strength, they just have a much higher pedigree and ability to make those chances count in ways that Arsenal are unable to.

So Bayern on an off day can still do enough to beat Arsenal over two legs.

It's heavyweight against lightweight, and that's just being truthful.

With that out of the way, now we have to ask the question whether there is a way in which Arsenal can beat Bayern.

It can be done, but Arsenal would have to produce their best game. Anything less won't suffice. They will need all their best players fit, and they'd need two great games, with excellent concentration and to be ruthless anytime they get a sniff in front of goal.

How likely is this to happen? For a team who are known to plunder under pressure and are allergic to winning big games?

If Giroud misses golden chances, or Ozil disappears and Alexis doesn't have his best game, then there is no chance they can defeat Bayern. Not even close.

I can understand some Arsenal fans wanting to be hopeful, and seeing how Bayern finished second in their group, and lost to Rostov. There is that glimmer of hope that Arsenal fans feel that this is the best time to face Bayern as they won't be as strong as they have been in the previous meetings they have had against them.

But when it comes to a knockout match, when it really counts, this is where the pendulum swings very heavily toward the direction of Bayern. I will always go for the more experienced team with players with that killer-instinct to come through a knockout game.

Can I be proven wrong? Sure. But I wouldn't count on it.







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 HH