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Arsenal defeat adds to growing list of Champions League last-16 failures under Arsene Wenger

Gunners on the brink of their seventh consecutive last-16 elimination after a 5-1 defeat by Bayern Munich

Thursday 16 February 2017 12:47 GMT

Arsene Wenger is facing a seventh straight Champions League last-16 elimination with Arsenal (Getty)

Arsenal are on the brink of a seventh successive last-16 exit in the Champions League following their 5-1 thrashing against Bayern Munich on Wednesday.

Unless Arsene Wenger's men pull off an incredible turnaround at the Emirates Stadium in the second leg they will once again fail to get past the first knockout hurdle in Europe's premier club competition.

Here, we look at their previous struggles to reach the quarter-finals.

2011: Lost to Barcelona 4-3 on aggregate

Late goals from Robin van Persie and Andrei Arshavin gave Arsenal a 2-1 first-leg lead against Pep Guardiola's side but, following Van Persie's controversial sending off with the return match at the Nou Camp level at 1-1, a Lionel Messi-led Barcelona edged to a 3-1 victory and went on to win the competition, beating Manchester United in the final at Wembley.

2012: Lost to AC Milan 4-3 on aggregate

Wenger's men almost pulled off an amazing turnaround, but came up just short against Milan. The Serie A side ran out 4-0 winners at the San Siro, with Kevin Boateng and Zlatan Ibrahimovic goals sandwiching Robinho's double. Arsenal fought back at the Emirates as Laurent Koscielny, Tomas Rosicky and Van Persie all scored in the first half, but the Gunners could not beat Christian Abbiati for a fourth time to force extra-time. Milan lost to Barcelona in the next round.

Bayern 5 Arsenal 1 player ratings

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1/22Bayern 5 Arsenal 1 player ratings

Bayern 5 Arsenal 1 player ratings

Manuel Neuer – 6 out of 10

Lucky not to be punished when he spilled Ozil’s first-half free-kick. Got down well to Sanchez’s penalty, perhaps should have stopped the rebound.

Bayern 5 Arsenal 1 player ratings

Philip Lahm – 7 out of 10

Weighted the cross for Lewandowski’s goal perfectly. Will miss the second leg after picking up a booking.

Bayern 5 Arsenal 1 player ratings

Javi Martinez – 7 out of 10

Looked uneasy when Arsenal’s forwards could run at him before the break, but was protected by his team’s dominance of possession afterwards.

Bayern 5 Arsenal 1 player ratings

Mats Hummels – 8 out of 10

Assured at the centre of Bayern’s defence, but in truth was rarely troubled.

Bayern 5 Arsenal 1 player ratings

David Alaba – 7 out of 10

Took a while to ease himself into the game but won his battle with Bellerin decisively.

Bayern 5 Arsenal 1 player ratings

Xabi Alonso – 7 out of 10

Failed to exert his usual influence in the first half, and should have done better to stop Sanchez’s effort, but was instrumental once Bayern started to move through the gears.

Bayern 5 Arsenal 1 player ratings

Arturo Vidal – 6 out of 10

A quieter influence on the game than his Bayern team-mates, but had little to contend with in the middle of the park.

Bayern 5 Arsenal 1 player ratings

Arjen Robben – 9 out of 10

His simply stunning strike in the opening exchanges set the tone for the evening. A reminder why he has been one of the continent’s best over the past decade.

Bayern 5 Arsenal 1 player ratings

Thiago – 8 out of 10

An excellent display was capped off with two sweet goals. Eased the ball past Ospina for Bayern’s third, slightly fortunate for his second.

Bayern 5 Arsenal 1 player ratings

Douglas Costa – 5 out of 10

Bayern’s only real disappointment of the night, he failed to fizz and crackle like the rest of their forward talents.

Bayern 5 Arsenal 1 player ratings

Robert Lewandowski – 8 out of 10

Somewhat unlucky to concede the penalty, but atoned with a magnificent header to put his side back in front. His assist for Thiago was even better.

Bayern 5 Arsenal 1 player ratings

David Ospina – 6 out of 10

Improved after a nervy start, and despite conceding five, stopped Bayern on several occasions. Produced one brilliant save to deny Martinez.

Bayern 5 Arsenal 1 player ratings

Hector Bellerin – 4 out of 10

Still looking bang out-of-sorts, the young Spaniard offered none of the invention and threat we have come to expect.

Bayern 5 Arsenal 1 player ratings

Shkodran Mustafi – 5 out of 10

No contest for Lewandowski, who used him as a climbing frame for Bayern’s second. Looked more comfortable with Koscielny as a partner.

Bayern 5 Arsenal 1 player ratings

Laurent Koscielny - 7 out of 10

Looked excellent early on and did well to win the penalty. His departure through injury at the start of the second half was the harbinger of Arsenal’s collapse.

Bayern 5 Arsenal 1 player ratings

Kieran Gibbs – 4 out of 10

Left-back continues to prove a problem area for Arsenal. Robben had it all his own way.

Bayern 5 Arsenal 1 player ratings

Francis Coquelin – 4 out of 10

Elected to stand off Robben rather than get tight, allowing the opening goal to fly past him. Recovered, but utterly over-ran by Bayern’s midfield after the break.

Bayern 5 Arsenal 1 player ratings

Granit Xhaka – 5 out of 10

Forced Neuer into action with a well-taken first-time shot from the edge of the box in the first half. It was his only real moment of note.

Bayern 5 Arsenal 1 player ratings

Alex Iwobi – 4 out of 10

A quiet night for the youngster. Substituted after Bayern’s fourth goal, replaced by Theo Walcott.

Bayern 5 Arsenal 1 player ratings

Mesut Ozil – 5 out of 10

Missing in action, once again. Could have punished Bayern when he broke in behind in the closing stages of the first half but ran down a blind alley.

Bayern 5 Arsenal 1 player ratings

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain – 4 out of 10

Failed to justify his surprise selection on the left-flank, rarely troubling Lahm.

Getty

Bayern 5 Arsenal 1 player ratings

Alexis Sanchez – 7 out of 10

Kept running into brick walls until the penalty. His initial effort was poor but showed composure to guide the ball home at the third time of asking.

2013: Lost to Bayern Munich on away goals

Another valiant fightback fell short. Lukas Podolski's goal at the Emirates appeared to count for little as Bayern eased to a 3-1 victory in London, but goals from Olivier Giroud and Koscielny put Arsenal 2-0 up in the Allianz Arena in the 86th minute. However, Bayern, who went on to beat Borussia Dortmund in the Wembley final, clung on to progress.

 Toni Kroos helped plot Arsenal's downfall in 2014 (Getty) (GETTY IMAGES)

2014: Lost to Bayern Munich 3-1 on aggregate

Bayern again ran out winners in London. Mesut Ozil missed a penalty and Wojciech Szczesny was dismissed in the first half before Toni Kroos and Thomas Muller both scored for the second successive year at the Emirates to earn a 2-0 victory. There was little to get excited about in the return match in Munich as the game ended 1-1. This time Bayern would come unstuck against eventual champions Real Madrid in the semi-finals.

2015: Lost to Monaco on away goals

See 2013, albeit against lesser opposition. Dimitar Berbatov helped the Ligue 1 club record a stunning 3-1 victory at the Emirates, before Arsenal rallied in the away leg. Giroud and Aaron Ramsey put the Gunners 2-0 up at Stade Louis II but they were denied a third which would have sent them through. Monaco lost to finalists Juventus in the last eight.

 Dimitar Berbatov celebrates his goal against Arsenal (Getty) (GETTY IMAGES)

2016: Lost to Barcelona 5-1 on aggregate

Two late goals from Messi in London left the Gunners needing to overcome a 2-0 deficit at the Nou Camp. Messi was on target again in the second leg and was joined on the scoresheet by fellow forwards Luis Suarez and Neymar as Mohamed Elneny's first Arsenal goal counted for little. Barcelona lost to finalists Atletico Madrid at the next stage.

PA

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