Many Arsenal fans let out a big sigh of despair and frustration when they learned of the Champions League draw that saw their beloved Gunners facing arch-rivals Bayern Munich in the round-of-16 as a result of their first place finish in Group A. It hardly seems like a reward for finishing top of their group but that is just the way the cookie crumbles as Bayern Munich could only finish 2nd in Group D coming behind the classy Atletico Madrid side to set up the tie.

When the Champions League resumes the two clubs will face off on in the round of 16: Bayern München (GER) v Arsenal (ENG) on the 15th February & the 7th March 2017.

So for the 4th year in a row Arsenal face Bayern. Bayern lost 1 match and drew 1 match to Arsenal in the Group stage last season in 2015-16 and beat the Gunners on aggregate in the round-of-16 in 2012-13 and 2013-14. They have played out the following results over the past 3 seasons:

2015-16: Group matches – B. Munich 5-1 Arsenal (Nov 4, 2015) and Arsenal 2-0 B. Munich (Oct 20, 2015)

2013-14: 3-1 aggregate loss – B. Munich 1-1 Arsenal (Mar 11, 2014) and Arsenal 0-2 B. Munich (Feb 19, 2014)

2012-13: aggregate loss (on away goals) – B. Munich 0-2 Arsenal (Mar 13, 2013) and Arsenal 1-3 B. Munich (Feb 19, 2013)

You can surmise from this that Arsenal CAN beat Bayern – they have done it with solid victories by a convincing 2-0 scoreline twice in the past 3 seasons but have been unable to keep the other leg of each tie close enough to claim the aggregate victory. So the solution seems simple keep one game very close – preferably a tie or optimistically a 1-0 win but let’s be honest either results will require a highly disciplined performance where Arsenal take one or more of the clear-cut chances it carves open and delivers an imperious, totally committed defensive performance for 90 minutes to a man. A big commitment which Arsenal have shown in recent years vs Bayern and even Barca for a game and a half but have ultimately suffered that temporary loss of concentration allowing a goal or have simply been beaten by a totally sublime piece of clinical brilliance from the likes of Messi or Muller that has knocked the stuffing out of Arsenal at a point in the game where the next goal was the game.

The thought from some who have actually taken the time to take a closer look at recent Champions League campaigns, is that the team actually deserves better than it has achieved over the past 6 seasons. With a bit of luck here and there the situation may not be vastly different but at least Arsenal would have navigated the round of 16 and anything can happen from there. The club found this out on the 2005-06 run to the Final which the Gunners were desperately unlucky to lose after overcoming so much with a ridiculously valiant effort only to just come up short 2-1, giving up the 2 goals which cost them the game in the last 15 minutes to Barca after Jens Lehman was sent off early and the Gunners played with 10 men for most of the game. Sol Campbell with a great header had given the Gunners the lead which held until the 75 minute before Barcelona came back.

Anyway, the point is Arsenal have history and are in form – forget the blip at Everton – they are playing with the fluidity not seen since the days of Pires and Bergkamp and Henry – ok perhaps not quite on that level all the time but there are more and more flashes of slick intuitive passing which is so pleasing on the eye but cuts opponents apart. Against Basel until about 70minutes there were interchanges between the forward 5 players – Iwobi, Perez, Ozil, and Ramsey and the unrivalled Sanchez which were attacking and intricate and did resemble the kind of “connected thinking” and “understanding” that top players like Henry, Bergkamp and Pires plus Ljungberg had together and I even I hate to say it RVP for a while plus there were good moments from pretty much everyone in the team in an attacking sense.

Bayern Munich are having a decent season under legendary manager Carlo Ancelotti but are not enjoying a lead at the top of the Bundesliga as they traditionally do. Munich have only just pulled into a tie at the top of the table sitting on 34 points with surprise package RP Leipzig plus they only finished 2nd in their Champions League group when usually they are a lock for 1st. They won 4 games in quaifying and lost a very surprising 2 games hence their 2nd place finish does not allow them to avoid a tougher round-of-16 tie where they will play a 1st place group finisher – Arsenal for the 4th year in a row – 3rd in the knockout round.

There are big positives for Arsenal in this game – they are clearly in the best form they have been in for a number of seasons and while they may have lost on Tuesday to Everton – they really should have won as their performance merited. They were irresistible last week against Basel and on the weekend vs Stoke City as a result of the form of Alexis Sanchez, Mesut Ozil, Theo Walcott, Alex Iwobi, Hector Bellerin and Shokdran Mustafi plus the unheralded Petr Cech and the super-solid Laurent Koscielny. The squad has such depth now that it boasts quality everywhere and Arsenal must seize this great opportunity to take down Bayern as they are so due and if they can keep the first leg tight, they have the ability, class, experience and genuine desire to win the 2nd leg between the likes of the intense Sanchez and World Cup winners like Ozil and Mustafi (if fit) who will be desperate to get one over on their compatriots, plus the infectious youth of Iwobi and Bellerin. Arsenal are in a superb position to really grab these 2 aggregate matches by the scruff of the neck and take Arsenal onto the next round which would be so inspirational for the entire season.

Finally Arsenal and the manager Arsene Wenger seem to be looking at the glass half-full and realising and most importantly believing that they are ready to compete with Europe’s elite. We believe that Arsenal can complete this mission and while they will be underdogs that should motivate them as they are truly capable of pulling off the upset and progressing in a tournament which they should be realistically aiming to win.

Share your views below in our comments – do you think we are being too optimistic or do you think Arsenal have arrived as genuine contenders for Champions League glory and capturing the elusive Premier League title again after a long wait. We believe Arsene Wenger has constructed a side capable of winning both competitions and while he really should add a couple of players in the winter transfer window to put them over the top, such acquisitions will send a really positive message to his players and be a statement of intent to the club’s rivals so the benefits of a couple of good signings would be three-fold. COYG!