It was far from ideal, and Arsenal still has a great deal of work ahead of them.
Though Bukayo Saka was denied a late penalty, Mikel Arteta and his team gave themselves a chance to go to the semi-finals on a night that could have gone horribly wrong.
10Leandro Trossard celebrates his crucial equaliserCredit: Reuters
10Harry Kane returned to North London to haunt Arsenal once againCredit: Getty
Bukayo Saka was convinced that he should have had a penaltyCredit: Alamy
Because everything was going according to plan for Bayern when Harry Kane gave his club a 2-1 lead until Leandro Trossard scored in the 76th minute.
After striking Gabriel Magalhaes in the face with his forearm and avoiding a red card, Kane may be fortunate to be able to play in the second leg the following week.
Saka collided with Manuel Neuer in the box during the last minute of stoppage time, and he was positive he should have been given a penalty.
Unexpectedly, considering their shaky recent performance, Bayern managed to get back into the match thanks to goals from two players who are local to this area of London.
After a blunder in the Arsenal defense, former striker Serge Gnabry equalized, and Kane’s goal was the least surprise of the evening.
The England captain was taunted with every touch of the ball, along with former Tottenham defender Eric Dier, so he would have been ecstatic when he rolled a penalty past David Raya in the first half.
Kane’s goal was a given because he had scored 14 goals in 19 North London derbies.
You have to wonder where Bayern would be without Kane’s goals, despite their poor season and 16-point deficit to Bundesliga leaders Bayer Leverkusen.
Since moving to Bavaria, he has scored 39 goals in 38 games, and he hopes to add to that total the next week.
Mikel Arteta will need to put on an incredible show for Arsenal on Wednesday. Trossard has shown them that they are far from out of it.
Arsenal has been excellent this season, but they were penalized for a few careless errors that were totally out of character.
Left-back Jakub Kiwior, one of the worst offenders in the first half, could hardly be upset about his substitution at halftime.
The mood seemed peculiar even though it was a big game because Bayern supporters were not let inside the stadium. This was FIFA’s reprimand to Uefa for their supporters throwing flares onto the field during their away games this season against Lazio and FC Copenhagen.
Though, as this was Arsenal’s first quarterfinal in 14 years, the roughly 3000 more supporters who were allowed to sit in the section usually designated for visiting fans were undoubtedly not grumbling.
Gabriel Martinelli was chosen over Gabriel Jesus in Arteta’s starting lineup because of his preference for speed.
Although Martinelli’s effort from beyond the area zipped past Manuel Neuer’s left post, he had the first opportunity.
After Saka generated that opportunity, left-back Alphonso Davies—who is currently suspended for the second leg in Munich—kicked him to the ground.
10Trossard slotted home Arsenal’s levellerCredit: AFP
10The striker slotted his penalty beyond David RayaCredit: Getty
Bayern boss Thomas Tuchel was furious with Swedish referee Glenn Nyberg for brandishing a yellow card inside the first 10 minutes as it was a first offence.
And Tuchel had only just finished his moaning at the fourth official when his team conceded to darken his mood further.
Davies, again, struggled to cope with Saka and was caught out of position. When Saka received a simple pass from Ben White, the England forward bent an effort around Dier and into the bottom left corner.
White, of all people, found himself in a terrific position to make it 2-1 but he hammered the effort straight at Neuer.
Arteta’s players had not put a foot wrong until Gabriel played a poor pass to Kiwior and Bayern seized possession.
Leon Goretzka slipped a pass to Gnabry and from around the penalty spot, he struck a shot throughout Raya’s leg for the equaliser.
It certainly felt odd that a goal of such importance was met with virtual silence and you could once again hear a pin drop when, 14 minutes later, Kane sent Raya completely the wrong way from the penalty spot for 2-1.
Arsenal really could not have any arguments over the penalty. Sane, having torn past the struggling Kiwior, was clattered into by William Saliba.
10Serge Gnabry equalised for the Bundesliga giantsCredit: Getty
Gnabry celebrated against his former sideCredit: GettyStrangely, even though they knew precisely what was going to happen, a sizable portion of Arsenal supporters stood up and took a bathroom break instead of watching Kane receive a penalty.
Kane never appeared to be missing at any point, and the result was exactly what was predicted, with Bayern’s No. 9 easily defeating Raya and then reveling in his victory in front of the home crowd.
Sane was on the verge of adding a third goal, and White’s incredible challenge was the only thing keeping Arsenal afloat.
Bayern maintained their lead and held firm for a large portion of the second half. After challenging Gabriel, Kane was able to get away with it and had a shot diverted for a corner.
Even when Leandro Trossard and Gabriel Jesus were added, Arsenal was unable to put the visiting defense to the test.
They were eventually rewarded for their patience and lack of panic. Saka gave Jesus the ball, and Jesus took out three Bayern players before setting up Trossard for the goal, but Neuer ought to have done better.
Trossard and his players, at least, knew that they might be able to make it back to Wembley for the June 1 final as they departed the field.
If Saka had received a spot kick in the end, though, things might have turned out lot better for them.
The England international rounded Neuer after racing onto Thomas Partey’s ball.
Saka then went down in a heap, but after seemingly kicking his leg into the German goalie, he was not given a penalty.
Bukayo Saka had gotten Arsenal off to a perfect startCredit: Getty
Saka celebrates his 12th minute strikeCredit: Getty
Harry Kane left Gabriel crumpled in a heapCredit: Reuters