Arsenal secured a dominant 3-1 Champions League victory over Bayern Munich with goals from Timber, Madueke, and Martinelli, earning Mikel Arteta’s praise as they continue their strong European campaign.
According to a report from The Independent, Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta was effusive in his praise for his side following their emphatic 3-1 victory over Bayern Munich, a match he believed was against the “best side in Europe.”
The statement win, achieved thanks to second-half goals from substitutes, extended the Premier League leaders’ perfect record to five victories from five matches in the Champions League, placing them firmly atop the table.
Arteta’s men initially took the lead through Jurrien Timber’s header, but Bayern’s 17-year-old star Lennart Karl scored the first goal Arsenal has conceded in the competition this season to equalize. However, after the break, the Gunners pulled away.
Noni Madueke, making a comeback after two months out with a knee injury, scored his first goal for the club, before Gabriel Martinelli capitalized on an error by Bayern goalkeeper Manuel Neuer to seal the win.
Arteta did not downplay the significance of the result, telling the press: “I have to praise our players because I think they had an incredible match against, in my opinion, the best team in Europe.”
He added that “Individually, we were immense to resolve all the challenges that these teams bring to the table.”
The report also detailed a difficult night for former Tottenham striker Harry Kane, who was returning to the Emirates but “endured a tough evening back on enemy territory,” failing to register a single shot at goal.
Kane admitted the difficulty to TNT Sports: “It was a tough game, which is kind of what we expected. It was a good battle in the first half which was fairly even.
Second half we didn’t quite have the same energy or intensity and we lost too many duels. It’s our first loss of the season. We don’t want to panic too much about it. But we will learn about it for sure.”