Bayern Munich 5 Arsenal 1: Five things we learnt - including Munich another class altogether

It was a miserable night for the Gunners in Munich

Arsenal's Santi Cazorla reacts after a miss

Munich another class altogether

3-0 up by half time, Munich never really looked like losing. The away loss against Arsenal clearly gave them something to prove. And prove it they did, looking every inch the potential Champions League winners that we know they could well be. They dominated the midfield, Douglas Costa raged havoc amongst the Arsenal back four and Coman looks like a star for the future. Lewandowski and Muller are both natural goal scorers, 34 between them already this season, they manage to drift away from defenders with consummate ease before effortlessly putting the ball in the back of the net. When Robben sauntered on an scored with his first touch, he reminded the footballing world that there is more to come, just ask Franck Ribéry. It was clear Munich were just a cut above.

Arsenal destined for mediocrity

The passion that seeped in droves from Arsenal last time out just wasn’t apparent this evening. Munich made it look like a training game, sliding the ball around and having frequent shots at goal. Another year goes by where Arsenal won’t make a serious mark in the Champions League; despite their qualification being justification for Wenger keeping his job year on year. 19 years after first joining the North London club, perhaps it’s time for the board to look towards someone who can take them to the next level. Who knows, perhaps that man was sitting in the opposite dugout.

Handball laws don’t make sense

If your arm is outstretched people say keep them to next to your body. Yet when Mesut Ozil kept his arm stuck to his chest and it cannoned off of it and into the net; the referee booked him. In fact; the only ruling that constitutes an illegal handball is if it’s deliberate. But what even is deliberate? How can a referee even make that decision? Graham Poll argues that deliberate is when the arms is in an ‘unnatural’ position? But… then that means the arm would need be extended outside of the body to be natural. Either way, FIFA really need to sort out their definition of ‘deliberate’.

Arsenal set to miss Walcott

A good finish from Giroud this evening but he just didn’t offer the same threat that Walcott would have done. Combined with Joel Campbell the Arsenal attack felt flat by comparison to a Munich offence that were the example of efficiency and ruthlessness. Whilst Walcott couldn’t hit a barn door with a banjo last week he created a number of opportunities. The extent to which he ran the Munich defence ragged with Sanchez and Ozil meant that Giroud was able to capitalise when he came on. Would he have made a result-changing difference this evening? No, but the threat Arsenal offered this week was clearly more limited than that of the reverse fixture.

Cech drifting to existential crisis

As the fourth goal went in, Petr Cech’s eyes dropped into a drooped gaze that Jean-Paul Satre himself would have displayed some sympathy with. The Czech had to deal with over 20 shots this evening. In some respects he was one of Arsenal’s best players, keeping the goal tally to only four was as much his doing as anyone else. Yet, after such a heavy night Cech must surely be questioning the point of his existence in the infinite totality of the transcendent universe and all its possibilities. Either that or it was the look a player gives when he imagines his retirement and a life on the beach sipping martini’s, spending the wealth he accumulated over a twenty year career; instead of having to pick another ball out of his net.