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Michael Ballack may have chuckled when asked by Gary Lineker how former international team-mate Per Mertesacker would cope with marking Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski before the Champions League tie last night, but the Arsenal man had the last laugh.
Ex-Chelsea midfielder Ballack, who was working as a pundit for BT Sport, made 98 appearances for the German national team, and played alongside Mertesacker for six years at international level.
Lewandowski has been in phenomenal form this season, having scored 22 goals in 15 games for Bayern and Poland before last night's game, and the prospect of the in-form striker facing Mertesacker made Ballack howl with laughter (watch video below ).
It was Mertesacker who was laughing at the end, however. Lewandowski failed to add to his goals total after a fine performance from the towering defender.
Show all 23 1 /23Arsenal vs Bayern Munich player ratings Arsenal vs Bayern Munich player ratings Petr Cech - 8 out of 10 Needed to be at his commanding best against the attacking wonders of Bayern, and certainly was. Saved well from Thiago on 10 minutes and carried on from there, showing a reassuring confidence from crosses. In particular a late save from Lewandowski seemed to have saved Arsenal from disappointment.
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Arsenal vs Bayern Munich player ratings Hector Bellerin - 5 out of 10 After the unpleasant grilling he was given by Douglas Costa it is worth reminding ourselves this is a player with less than a year of first-team football to his name. And it showed, as time and again he struggled to come up with anything that could stop his opponent.
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Arsenal vs Bayern Munich player ratings Per Mertesacker- 7 out of 10 The centre-back was at the heart of the action throughout, and had to be at his reliable best as cross after cross came towards his head. Happily for Arsene Wenger he was, clearing with whatever part of his body he had to.
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Arsenal vs Bayern Munich player ratings Laurent Koscileny - 6 out of 10 A rather quieter night for the other centre-back, in part aided by the consistent performances of the pair around him. But yet again Koscielny scarcely put a foot wrong, and kept a careful eye on Lewandowski.
2015 The Arsenal Football Club Plc
Arsenal vs Bayern Munich player ratings Nacho Monreal - 8 out of 10 So often tagged with the term reliable this was far more than that from the left-back. His positioning was first-rate and it spoke volumes of his performance that Muller enjoyed long periods of near anonymity.
2015 The Arsenal Football Club Plc
Arsenal vs Bayern Munich player ratings Francis Coquelin - 6 out of 10 The centre-back was at the heart of the action throughout, and had to be at his reliable best as cross after cross came towards his head. Happily for Arsene Wenger he was, clearing with whatever part of his body he had to.
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Arsenal vs Bayern Munich player ratings Santi Cazorla - 6 out of 10 Arsenal’s gameplan necessitated that their deep-lying playmaker play at his best to instigate passing movements. Too often he did not. At half-time he had twice given the ball away loosely in his own half. It was less of a problem in the second half but this was not vintage Cazorla.
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Arsenal vs Bayern Munich player ratings Aaron Ramsey - 6 out of 10 A strong defensive shift from the Welshman, who tucked in well on the regular occasions when Arsenal were out of possession. This was not his usual attacking performance, but he was a vital component until picking up a hamstring injury on the hour mark.
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Arsenal vs Bayern Munich player ratings Alexis Sanchez - 8 out of 10 Another excellent performance from Sanchez, who made as great a player as Philipp Lahm look supremely average. Wherever, whenever he just ran at defenders, creating opportunities aplenty in the process. On the rare occasions when he did give away the ball he simply turned around and won it back.
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Arsenal vs Bayern Munich player ratings Mesut Ozil - 7 out of 10 Ozil’s revival continues, even if he was not quite able to provide a telling touch to the game. Unlike his colleagues his passing on the counter was accurate, though his eagerness to drift into space too often left him unable to get where the action was.
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Arsenal vs Bayern Munich player ratings Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain - 6 out of 10 Kept Bernat plenty busy after his introduction, providing direct running at a time when Arsenal were running short on ideas.
Arsenal vs Bayern Munich player ratings Olivier Giroud - 7 out of 10 One clear-cut chance, one goal. It may not be the most beautiful of finishes, but it was by some distance his most important in an Arsenal shirt. As his colleagues looked to stem back the tide his ability to hold the ball up was vital.
Arsenal vs Bayern Munich player ratings Manuel Neuer - 5 out of 10 For 75 minutes he reminded us why he was the best keeper in the world. Then he looked like David Ospina. Saved well from Ozil early on but the diving stop from Walcott’s close range header will live long in the memory. Not as long as his blunder for Giroud’s goal though.
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Arsenal vs Bayern Munich player ratings Jerome Boateng - 6 out of 10 The criticism of Boateng has often been that he is prone to falling asleep. And there were certainly times when he allowed himself, and Walcott, to drift away. Looked more composed in the second half, stepping forward well to cut out attacks.
Arsenal vs Bayern Munich player ratings Philipp Lahm - 5 out of 10 Having spent many recent games in midfield he often struggled with the pace and aggression of Sanchez, lacking the yard of pace that made him such a dangerous right back previously.
Arsenal vs Bayern Munich player ratings David Alaba - 7 out of 10 At the home of Arsenal this man put in a performance Tony Adams would have been proud of. His reading of the oppositions attacks was outstanding, he was often the last-man between Theo Walcott and Manuel Neuer.
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Arsenal vs Bayern Munich player ratings Juan Bernat - 6 out of 10 Arsenal focused their attack on the Bayern right, leaving Bernat with a quiet shift defensively. He did all that could be asked of him at the back and was scarcely needed going forward as Douglas Costa ran riot.
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Arsenal vs Bayern Munich player ratings Xabi Alonso - 6 out of 10 Like Alaba he played a key role in stemming Arsenal’s counter-attacking sallies, in particular blocking off passing avenues for Arsenal’s deep midfielders to release their attackers on a regular basis.
2015 The Arsenal Football Club Plc
Arsenal vs Bayern Munich player ratings Thiago - 6 out of 10 The most influential of Bayern’s midfielders in the early stages, he brought impressive verticality to the play, linking well with both Muller and Costa. His passing was unerringly accurate, but he was never able to play the crucial final pass.
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Arsenal vs Bayern Munich player ratings Arturo Vidal - 5 out of 10 One of the few players in the game to have what appeared to be a genuine off-night, he simply could not get on the ball often enough to influence the game. He particularly struggled to find space from which to drive forward and it was little surprise he made way first.
Arsenal vs Bayern Munich player ratings Diego Costa - 8 out of 10 A sheer joy to watch, with the pace and trickery to make Hector Bellerin look ordinary for the first time in a long while. His flicks , tricks and dribbling will remain the highlight of the night for anyone at the Emirates, has a new star been born?
Arsenal vs Bayern Munich player ratings Thomas Muller - 6 out of 10 The Emirates did not see much of Muller at his best as he sat wide on the right in what was a relatively unremarkable 4-3-3 from Guardiola. Did not drift into space as we know he can, though much of was down to the close coverage he received from Monreal.
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Arsenal vs Bayern Munich player ratings Robert Lewandowski - 6 out of 10 Well marshalled by Mertesacker and Koscielny, but on the rare occasion she could get on the ball he reminded us why he is Europe’s most fearsome striker, forcing several good diving saves from Cech.
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Arsenal won the hard-fought game thanks to goals from Olivier Giroud and Mesut Ozil to keep their hopes of progressing from the group stage intact. The teams play again on 4 Novemeber at the Allianz Arena.
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