The UEFA Champions League is back this week and Arsenal take on German titans Bayern Munich. Pep Guardiola’s side are always a difficult team to play against and being in such good form at the moment, they will pose a serious threat to the Gunners. Arsene Wenger’s men come into this fixture in the hopes of securing their first points in Europe this season. Shock losses to Dinamo Zagreb and Olympiacos have left the Gunners bottom of their group and so they will be looking to kickstart their European title challenge this week. With recent victories over Manchester United and Watford under their belt, Arsenal are in a strong position going into the game.
The main man who Arsenal must be wary of is Robert Lewandowski. The Polish international is in red-hot form this season and will be looking to carry on his superb goalscoring efforts against Arsenal. Lewandowski has everything that is needed to trouble the Arsenal defence. He is quick, excellent in the air and lethal in front of goal. As such, there are only two ways to stop the Pole from scoring. The first is to cut out passes aimed for him. Munich will try and play Lewandowski in behind the Arsenal centre-backs and so it is imperative that Francis Coquelin remains rigid defensively. He must patrol in front of the Gunners’ back four and stop any and all attempted through balls aimed for the Bayern man.
The second way that Arsenal can deal with Lewandowski is to challenge him physically. Similarly to Olivier Giroud for Arsenal, the Pole is a physically imposing player who is more than willing to battle with defenders for the ball. Koscielny and Gabriel must be played. Per Mertesacker is an excellent reader of the game, but the speed that Munich attack with will ultimately prove too much for him. Therefore, the Gabriel and Koscielny partnership must be utilised. Both players are fairly quick across the ground and will be able to compete with Lewandowski for pace. However, both of these defenders also adopt a physical approach to defending. Gabriel is never afraid to tussle with an attacker for the ball and Koscielny is no more likely to back down than the Brazilian is. Ultimately, if Lewandowski is muscled off of the ball and he doesn’t receive clean passes then he will be choked out of the game and his presence will be nullified which would kill off a large chunk of the Munich attack.
The other player who Arsenal must be wary of is Thomas Muller. The German has an uncanny ability to pop up at just the right moment and poach a goal from nothing. He isn’t the kind of player who will run at defenders, nor is he particularly strong passing the ball. Muller excels at receiving the ball after a clever run into the box and from there he is an excellent shot. In order to limit Muller’s effectiveness, the Arsenal players must make sure to track his runs. Obviously, the defenders can’t get drawn into him all the time which is why the attackers must offer their services in defence. If Hector Bellerin or Nacho Monreal follow Muller, then an attacker must fill in the gap which is left so that Munich aren’t given any extra space to play in. Overall, as long as the Gunners don’t make silly mistakes then Muller will be limited to pot shots and half-attempts.
Going forward, Arsene Wenger’s side must attack with speed and flair. They won’t be given the same time and space that they had against either Watford or Manchester United and when they attack, they must make sure that each pass counts and that every shot is at least testing Manuel Neuer because ultimately the Gunners won’t get too many. With Alexis Sanchez in prime form for Arsenal and attackers such as Theo Walcott, Mesut Ozil and Aaron Ramsey looking very impressive in recent weeks, the Gunners should pose a very serious threat for Munich but they must make sure that they are clinical in attack. Arsenal always look the most dangerous when they attack quickly on the counter and with the pace that they have at their disposal, there is no reason why, even the mighty Bayern Munich cannot be caught out on the counter.
Either way, the Gunners must be looking to claim at least one point, ideally all three. It won’t be the end of the world if they don’t beat the Germans but it will certainly prove a mountain of a task to escape from their group if they don’t start claiming points soon. A win against Guardiola’s side would certainly boost the Gunners’ confidence and would give them their first three points in Europe which may prove crucial.
