Champions League Bayern 8 Goals in two games | Champions League Arsenal 0 Goals conceded in two games | At home in Europe Bayern 39 Unbeaten, with 37 wins | League phase Arsenal 14 Wins in a row |
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| 01 The Big Take |
| Saturday answered the selection question. Tonight the selection is partly out of Kompany's hands. |
| Olise is suspended after his red card in Stavanger. Kimmich is out after a bereavement in his immediate family; the club said everyone at Bayern stands by him. Musiala is still injured. And Kompany missed training with a viral infection. His assistant Aaron Danks, who took the press conference, said he wasn't sure Kompany would be at the game. |
| Against Leipzig the strongest XI won 6–1. Against Arsenal, the champions of England, Bayern will be without their top scorer and their midfield organiser. |
| Arsenal have won eight of nine games this season in the league and Europe, conceding five. In the Champions League they've won both, 1–0 at Napoli and 3–0 against Lille. They're the only team yet to concede in the competition. |
| Eight goals scored against none conceded. And Bayern are missing half their spine. |
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| We wish Joshua Kimmich and his family well. The other team news is from Tuesday's press conference and previews (Sports Mole, kicker via Fussballnationalmannschaft.net). It may change before kick-off. |
| 02 The Tactical Take |
| Four things that decide it |
| 1 · Attack: life without Olise |
| Olise has 14 goal involvements in ten games this season. Lennart Karl is the favourite to replace him on the right, with Gnabry the alternative. That shifts more of the load onto Díaz, fresh from a hat-trick, and onto Kane. |
| Against Leipzig, Kane dropping off the front line beat a single holding midfielder. Arsenal are expected to play two in front of the defence, Rice and Guimarães. The space Kane found on Saturday will be much harder to find tonight. |
| 2 · Midfield: no Kimmich |
| The kicker line-up has Tom Bischof alongside Pavlović. Bischof started in Stavanger, in the first half that Bayern lost 2–0. Against Arsenal's press, keeping the ball through midfield matters more than it did against Leipzig. |
| 3 · Defence: the space behind, again |
| Bayern's high line and thin cover behind the ball were the theme of last week. Arsenal have the runners to test it: Saka on the right, Madueke likely on the left after his winner at Forest. Neuer trained and could return, but Danks said no decision had been made. Whoever plays will spend the night watching balls over the top. |
| 4 · Set pieces: the real danger |
| Last season Arsenal scored 25 Premier League goals from set pieces, 19 of them from corners, a league record. Bayern's last Champions League game? Two headers conceded from one player's deliveries in Stavanger. Against Leipzig it wasn't tested; they had three corners. Tonight it will be. |
| Arsenal are without Saliba, Hincapié and Tzolis. Konsa, signed from Aston Villa in the summer, is expected alongside Gabriel. Previews differ on whether Gyökeres or Havertz leads the line. |
| 03 The Numbers |
This season, league and Champions League (9 games each) ■ Arsenal ■ Bayern |
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15 in 22 Kane's goals against Arsenal. But he hasn't scored in his last two games against them. |
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19 Corner goals for Arsenal in last season's Premier League. A league record, part of 25 set-piece goals. |
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3–1 Arsenal's win over Bayern at the Emirates a year ago. Madueke scored that night. |
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2013 Arsenal's only win at the Allianz Arena. 2–0 in the last 16, with Arteta as captain. They've lost their last three visits. |
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| 04 The One Thing You Missed |
Beyond the headlines Bayern go into this as league leaders, on goal difference What we saw Leverkusen beat Freiburg 2–1 on Sunday, so Bayern finished the weekend top: 14 points, level with Dortmund, but with a goal difference of +17 to Dortmund's +7. A week ago they were third after two draws. What we think it means The table is tight: four teams within a point. After Arsenal, Bayern go to Freiburg, third, on Sunday. With Kimmich out and Kompany unwell, how the minutes are shared tonight could shape the weekend too. |
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| 05 The Counterargument |
| Maybe Arsenal's defence hasn't really been tested |
| — Two games is a small sample. Napoli and Lille scored none, but Arsenal have only four Champions League goals themselves, the fewest of any team in the top ten. |
| — Bayern score at home. They've scored in every Champions League game for a long run and are 39 unbeaten at home in the competition. Arsenal have lost their last three visits to Munich. |
| — Arsenal are missing defenders too. No Saliba, no Hincapié. Konsa and Gabriel are a new partnership, and Arsenal conceded three at Brighton last month. |
| 06 What to Watch |
| Four things to look for tonight |
1 | The first Arsenal corner. After Stavanger, it's the clearest test of whether Bayern have fixed anything. |
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2 | Karl against Arsenal's left-back. Can he give Bayern the threat Olise usually does on the right? |
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3 | Kane between Rice and Guimarães. Count how often he gets turned facing goal. On Saturday it happened a lot. |
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4 | Who's on the touchline. If Kompany can't make it, Danks leads the team, as he largely did against Leipzig. |
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| Out for Bayern: Olise (suspended), Kimmich (personal reasons), Musiala (thigh). Kim Min-jae was a doubt after coming off against Leipzig; kicker expects him to start. |
The B90 Question With Kimmich out, who should run Bayern's midfield tonight: Bischof, or someone else? Tell us on X @Beyond90Bayern. We'll pick up the best answers in the post-match issue. |
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Next: SC Freiburg v Bayern
Bundesliga · Matchday 7 · Sun 25 Oct · 16:30 UK
Freiburg are third |
| Sources: Sports Mole: team news, form and stats · Bulinews: Danks press conference · Fussballnationalmannschaft.net: kicker line-up, Kimmich statement · The Stats Zone: preview · Wikipedia: Arsenal 2026–27 season · Results and table: GoalIQ |
BEYOND 90 Bayern Munich, beyond the scoreline. Tactical insight. Honest analysis. Opinions you won't get from the usual coverage. An independent publication. Not affiliated with or endorsed by FC Bayern München. |
