Arsenal out of Europe despite draw in Munich

Arsenal were knocked out of this season's Champions League, but they didn't go out without a fight, drawing 1-1 on the night but only missing out on a place due to Bayern's 3-1 aggregate lead. The damage had been done in the first leg where we were defeated 2-0. Arsenal went behind on the night but then managed to grab an equaliser, but we left it too late in the tie and Bayern were allowed to stroke the ball around with relative ease whilst our players were left chasing shadows. It was disappointing to go out at the same stage, to the same team for the second year in a row but there were plenty of positives to draw upon. In terms of the line-up Wenger put out it contained a few surprises. Mathieu Flamini didn't start in centre midfield as Arteta and the Ox were put together. Meanwhile Lukas Podolski also started. Due to injuries at left back Thomas Vermaelen deputised as Koscielny returned from injury at centre back.

Lukas Podolski's goal against his old club wasn't enough

Truth be told, the Gunners had lost this tie in the first leg due to various things. Mesut Ozil's penalty, had it gone in would've been a brilliant start. The most crucial thing though was the red card to Wojciech Szczesny. Without a doubt it was a red card but with it the whole tie was to swing completely. We'd matched Bayern with 11 men until that point and we had them on the ropes.

The second leg was a much tighter affair though. Bayern still dominated the possession, as a team would when under the management of Pep Guardiola. However we had our chances and may well have gone through if things had gone our way. There was poor marking for their goal as Schweinsteiger managed to find himself unmarked in the box to fire home. That gave Arsenal the kick that they needed, but it was too little too late. Moments later we found an equaliser on the night. Lukas Podolski had been relatively quiet until he rifled the ball home. He perhaps fouled Lahm in the build-up but Bayern's protests were waved away as the German smashed the ball home at Neuer's near post.

Arjen Robben, despite him being the most predictable player in world football managed to cause us problems. He managed to cut inside Vermaelen on many occasions and almost had himself two penalties, one he definitely did get though. The first one was a shocking dive that somehow went unpunished and then with Arsenal desperately trying to get the ball forward, Koscielny bundled him over late on. Thomas Muller had a chance to seal the win but Lukasz Fabianski made a brilliant save with his feet to see the third penalty of the tie missed. Although Wenger has said the Polish keeper is likely to leave at the end of the season, he's been brilliant in our last two seasons when called upon and I'd love to see him remain at the club.

The biggest positive that could be drawn from the game was that of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain. He was absolutely brilliant and showed in front of a huge audience what he could do. Playing in a deeper role to usual his surging runs forward were a joy to behold. Perhaps if he was allowed to play outwide then we could've created more. Needless to say he was our man of the match. In the first half he ran from just inside the Bayern half, beat a few players before being brought down on the edge of the area. He was a force against Everton and once again showed his quality on Tuesday night.

One man that seems to be mentioned after every single game though is Mesut Ozil. He returned to form at the weekend but was unnecessarily slated for his first half performance the other night. He revealed that in fact he picked up a muscle injury in the first two minutes, something that's now ruled him out for about a month. Many media outlets were on his back at how poor he'd been once more. The fact of the matter is you can't expect him to work wonders against the best team in the world  when he's injured. He helped us reach the semi-finals of the FA Cup and we can be grateful for that. We've done better with him this season that without him too. It's hugely frustrating that both him and Wilshere will miss our most crucial period of the season in terms of who we face in the League.

Like last year, I really hope that the performance against Bayern is seen as a plus. We managed to go to Munich and hold our own for the second year in a row. A draw against them is certainly nothing to complain about, other than the fact we're out of Europe. However it can be seen as a stepping stone to go onto greater things this season. We're still in with a fighting chance of the League and we have our best chance of winning a trophy in years with who is left in the FA Cup. Next up is Spurs in the North London derby. A game we simply cannot lose.

The teams line-ups:

Bayern Munich: Neuer, Lahm, Martinez, Dante, Alaba, Thiago, Schweinsteiger, Robben, Gotze(60), Ribery(85), Mandzukic. 
Subs: Starke, van Buyten, Boateng, Rafinha, Kroos(60), Muller(85),  Pizarro.

Arsenal: Fabianski, Sagna, Mertesacker, Koscielny, Vermaelen, Arteta(77), Oxlade-Chamberlain(84), Cazorla, Ozil(45), Podolski, Giroud.
Subs: Viviano, Jenkinson, Hayden, Flamini(84), Rosicky(45), Gnabry(77). No seventh sub due to Miyaichi not being eligible.

My man of the match: Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.

Referee: Svein Oddvar Moen (NOR)