Arsenal edged past the Portuguese side Porto on penalties on 12th March, 2024 to make it through to the quarter final of the Champions League for the first time since the 2009/10 season. With the draw made for the 2023/24 quarters and semis, Mikel Arteta’s men know what they have to do to make it to the final for the first time since 2005/06… and it isn’t going to be easy.
There’s the prospect of a clash against current European and Premier League champions Manchester City in the semis. Before that, the Gunners will face German powerhouses Bayern Munich and a certain bang-in-form striker who used to ply his trade not a million miles from the Emirates. So, what are Arsenal’s chances of overcoming the multiple German and European champions? Let’s take a look back at their previous meetings (all of which came in the Champions League) to get some clues.
Arsenal Versus Bayern Munich Matches
| Date | Match | Arsenal’s Result | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 05 Dec 2000 | Arsenal v Bayern Munich | D | 2-2 |
| 14 Mar 2001 | Bayern Munich v Arsenal | L | 1-0 |
| 22 Feb 2005 | Bayern Munich v Arsenal | L | 3-1 |
| 09 Mar 2005 | Arsenal v Bayern Munich | W | 1-0 |
| 19 Feb 2013 | Arsenal v Bayern Munich | L | 1-3 |
| 13 Mar 2013 | Bayern Munich v Arsenal | W | 0-2 |
| 19 Feb 2014 | Arsenal v Bayern Munich | L | 0-2 |
| 11 Mar 2014 | Bayern Munich v Arsenal | D | 1-1 |
| 20 Oct 2015 | Arsenal v Bayern Munich | W | 2-0 |
| 04 Nov 2015 | Bayern Munich v Arsenal | L | 5-1 |
| 15 Feb 2017 | Bayern Munich v Arsenal | L | 5-1 |
| 07 Mar 2017 | Arsenal v Bayern Munich | L | 1-5 |
Arsenal vs Bayern Munich Stats
| Wins | Draws | Losses | Goals For | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arsenal | 3 | 2 | 7 | 13 |
| Bayern | 7 | 2 | 3 | 27 |
As you can see, although Arsenal have beaten Bayern three times in the Champions League over the years, they’ve lost on seven occasions. It’s also notable, and concerning from an Arsenal perspective, that the Gunners lost each of their last three games against the Bavarian side by 5-1 scorelines!
It’s interesting to note that two of Arsenal’s three wins against the Germans came in Round of 16 ties that they still lost on aggregate (and hence were eliminated from that season’s competition). The other victory came in a group game, but they lost the reverse fixture 5-1. All in all, things are not looking so promising for Mikel Arteta’s men.
But let’s take a closer look at some of the more recent matches between the sides and see if we can discover anything that could give Arteta and co hope ahead of their quarter final clash this season.
Round of 16, 2016/17 – Bayern Smash Arsenal 10-2 on Aggregate
From an Arsenal perspective, there were very few positives to take from back-to-back 5-1 hammerings at the hands of Bayern Munich. Things weren’t going all that badly for the Gunners at half time in the first leg as the scores were level at 1-1 after Alexis Sanchez struck to cancel out Arjen Robben’s exceptional opener. But things fell apart for Arsène Wenger’s men in the second period as Robert Lewandowski, Thiago Alcantara and sub Thomas Muller all scored (Alcantara twice) to leave Arsenal fans praying for a miracle in the second leg.
As it turned out, there were no miracle-giving deities at the Emirates a couple of weeks later, and although Arsenal opened brightly and even went a goal up, once again it was a poor second half that cost Wenger’s men. Laurent Koscielny, who went off injured before Bayern ran riot in the first leg, got sent off just before the Germans began scoring freely in the second half of the second leg. And the final result was the same: 5-1 to Bayern. At least the Gunners went on to win the FA Cup that season.
Group Stage, 2015/16 – Arsenal Victorious at Home… Appalling Away
Arsenal showed the kind of mettle they will need in this season’s quarters when they overcame a very strong Bayern side 2-0 in October 2015 at the Emirates. Unlike on many occasions in Europe, Wenger’s men played a patient, measured game and – despite giving up plenty of possession – restricted the Germans to six shots on target (Arsenal mustered eight).
The breakthrough for the home side didn’t come until late in the game, Olivier Giroud poking the ball into the net after 77 minutes. As Bayern pushed for an equaliser, Mesut Ozil added a second for the home side in injury time.
It was, of course, a different story in the return fixture in Bavaria. Bayern would have qualified from the group without the win, but they were in no mood to go easy on their English opponents and dominated the game. With almost 70% possession and 23 attempts, 13 of which were on target, Arsenal were perhaps lucky to avoid a bigger defeat. As it was, the Gunners could only manage two shots on target, but at least scored one of them. The first of three consecutive 5-1 defeats at the hands of Bayern certainly rocked the Arsenal squad of the day.
Round of 16, 2012/13 – Arsenal Edged Out After Brave Display
If we go back a little further, in 2012/13 the Gunners were so very close to getting the better of their German rivals. Unfortunately, they rather made a hash of things in the first leg at the Emirates, and early goals from Toni Kroos and Thomas Muller put the Germans in the box seat. Arsenal didn’t give up and pulled one back through Lukas Podolski. But Mario Mandzukic’s goal looked to have put the tie to bed… at least until the Gunners turned up in spades in Bavaria.
Against all expectations, they blasted out of the blocks in the second leg and a third-minute goal from Giroud had the away side (and fans) fired up and ready for the battle. For once the free-scoring Bayern were unable to find a way through Arsenal’s defence and when Koscielny scored Arsenal’s second with just a few minutes to go, the away fans dared to believe.
Alas, despite the tie being level on 3-3 at the final whistle, the Germans went through on the away goal rule. Still, it showed Arsenal were only a whisker away from getting past the Germans, and if they approach the 2023/24 quarter final with similar grit and belief, they have a very good chance of making it to the semis. And oh how nice it would be to see a certain Harry Kane looking miserable at the final whistle!