UCL: Arsene Wenger feels Arsenal "might just glide through" against Bayen in QF 2nd-leg clash
The former Arsenal head coach added that the German club will lack confidence going into their upcoming fixture as they have been vulnerable in the Bundesliga.
Team Arsenal (Photo: Premier League)
MUNICH: Legendary football manager Arsene Wenger, who helmed Arsenal's 'Invincibles', weighed in on his former club's chances in the Champions League second-leg clash with Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich, backing the Gunners to "glide through" at the Allianz Arena in the early hours of Thursday.
In the first leg of the UCL match, Arsenal and Bayern ended the game on level terms, with a scoreline of 2-2. Bukayo Saka and Leandro Trossard scored for the Gunners, while Serge Gnabry and Harry Kane got on the scoresheet for the German club.
Speaking to beIN Sports, Wenger said the second-leg clash between the two footballing giants will be a "50-50 game".
The former Arsenal head coach added that the German club will lack confidence going into their upcoming fixture as they have been vulnerable in the Bundesliga.
"Arsenal against Bayern Munich is a 50-50 game. Bayern have recently been vulnerable at home in the Bundesliga, they lost to Dortmund in a very important game so they will not be 100 per cent confident. I still think Arsenal might just glide through against Bayern," Wenger was quoted as saying by Goal.com.
Munich have struggled for consistency in the recent past, winning just two of the previous five matches. They fell to a 2-0 loss to Borussia Dortmund, dealing a severe blow to their bid to defend the Bundesliga title.
The German club, however, will go into this clash after beating FC Koln 2-0 in the Bundesliga. Arsenal, on the other hand, lost their last match in the EPL to Aston Villa by a scoreline of 2-0.
The Gunners have won just two of the last five matches across competitions.
The last time both sides confronted each other in the UCL knockout stage in 2017, Wenger was still Arsenal's manager, and Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery were still running the wings for Bayern.
Their last encounter in Europe's premier footballing competition resulted in a 10-2 aggregate defeat for the Gunners, with Bayern scoring five goals each across both legs.