Holders Bayern Munich held on to a 1-1 draw at Allianz Stadium against a spirited Arsenal side to advance to the Champions League quarterfinal with a 3-1 aggregate win.
Having lost the first leg 2-0 in London, the odds were always going to be against Arsene Wenger’s men. They fought bravely throughout the match and should be commended for their fighting spirit, though many Arsenal supporters will question the performance of Mesut Ozil who had a miserable tie, starting with his penalty miss in the first leg. The former Real Madrid playmaker was substituted at half-time for Tomas Rosicky due to a tight hamstring (Note: Wenger announced that Ozil will miss “a few weeks”).
After a goalless first half, Bayern effectively sealed the tie with a goal on 55 minutes when Bastian Schweinsteiger converted a Franck Ribery cross. Arsenal, however would quickly equalize thanks to former Munich striker Lukas Podolksi.
Arsenal continued throwing men forward, but were unable to add a second goal with Bayern weathering the onslaught and booking their place in the Champions League quarterfinals.
Bayern had a questionable penalty awarded when the referee ruled that winger Arjen Robben was “taken down” by Laurent Koscielny. Justice seemed served however when Thomas Muller had his penalty shot stopped by goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski.
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