Three Arsenal players have been singled out to take the blame for one calamitous moment against Bayern Munich.
Arsenal crashed out of the Champions League at the quarter-final stage against Bayern Munich on Wednesday night.
The aggregate score in this tie was level at 2-2 heading into this second-leg fixture in Germany. Both sides will have seen this as a must-win match. However, it was a cagey first half. The Gunners had moments of forward momentum, but never really clicked into gear in the final third.
The hosts grew into the game as it went on and started the second half brightly. The pressure mounted on Arsenal, and eventually told in the 63rd minute when Joshua Kimmich connected with a cross in the box and thundered a header into the back of the net.
The Bayern Munich star had been allowed to ghost into the box, found space, and left David Raya no chance with his finish.
Three Arsenal stars blamed for Bayern Munich goal
In the aftermath of the goal, journalist Sam Dean took to X to point the finger of blame at three Arsenal stars who he felt were at fault for the goal.
The reporter said, “Martinelli, Tomiyasu and Rice all seemed to leave Kimmich to each other. You don’t get away with that type of defending in this type of match.”
The marking in this scenario was certainly poor. Gabriel Martinelli didn’t track Kimmich’s run, and neither Takehiro Tomiyasu or Declan Rice were able to get close enough to intervene.
Prior to kick-off, Mikel Arteta will have stressed the importance of not conceding the first goal to his side. As soon as Bayern Munich got their nose in front, they were able to sit a little deeper and look to frustrate with a dogged defensive effort, whilst looking for opportunities to spring a counter-attack.
Arsenal must learn harsh Champions League lesson
After going 1-0 down, Arsenal never really threatened an equaliser, even as Arteta threw attacking reinforcements onto the pitch in the shape of Gabriel Jesus, Leandro Trossard, and Eddie Nketiah.
Rice, Tomiyasu, and Martinelli will be disappointed with their collective lapse which allowed Kimmich to take this tie away from them. Arteta had been urged to start Tomiyasu in this match, whilst Martinelli is usually so diligent in his defensive work, and Rice has been rock-solid for Arsenal all season.
The Gunners now need to learn from this chastening Champions League experience and return their full focus to the Premier League title race.