Arsenal host Bayern Munich in a top-of-the-table Champions League clash on Wednesday night, but one of the box office elements will sadly be missing at the Emirates Stadium
The Champions League is about the best coming up against the best – and Arsenal vs Bayern Munich is one of the most hotly anticipated matches of the season so far. But supporters will be deprived of one of the most exciting match-ups on Wednesday night.
Bayern and Arsenal appear to be perfectly matched. Like the Gunners, Vincent Kompany’s side have a perfect record in the Champions League so far, with four straight wins, and sit top of their domestic league by a six-point margin. Like Arsenal, Bayern also have the best domestic defensive and attacking record.
The Emirates Stadium will therefore arguably host the two best sides in Europe. It is a tantalising prospect that will draw plenty of neutral eyes eager to see Harry Kane vs William Saliba, Michael Olise vs Martin Zubimendi and Bukayo Saka vs Josip Stanisic. But they will be deprived of what may have been the best of the lot: Luis Diaz vs Jurrien Timber.
Diaz has been on fire for Bayern this season, contributing 11 goals and five assists in 18 games. It was his brace that earned the German giants their most impressive win of the season: the 2-1 victory over Paris Saint-Germain at the Parc des Princes on November 4.
However, it was another of his actions in that match which means he will sit out of the Arsenal game. Diaz caught PSG right-back Achraf Hakimi with a poor tackle and was sent off. It was confirmed on Saturday that he had been handed a three-match ban for his mistimed challenge, leaving Bayern furious.
“My information is that he’s suspended for one game,” Kompany said before the news was confirmed. “I’d be really disappointed if it turned out my information wasn’t correct.”
That is exactly what happened and Bayern chief executive Jan-Christian Dreesen then confirmed they would appeal. “We’ve requested the written justification of the verdict from UEFA in order to lodge an appeal,” he said. “We will see if we can manage to reduce the ban. We assumed it would only be one game after an initial letter from UEFA. So the three-match ban surprised us just as much as everyone else; we couldn’t have expected it at all.
“It was obviously a serious foul, but it wasn’t an act of violence, nor was it directed at the referee, nor was there any further offense after the foul. In the past, only such things have resulted in a three-match ban. We believe there shouldn’t be a three-match ban, but realistically, we have to say that such an appeal only succeeds in rare cases.”
Bayern will be without Diaz on Wednesday, but they will still have a serious number of weapons at their disposal, having warmed up with a 6-2 battering of Freiburg on the weekend. Arsenal have the best defensive record in Europe’s top five leagues this season and are yet to concede in the Champions League, having seen off Athletic Club, Olympiakos, Atletico Madrid and Slavia Prague in style.
Timber is one of the most in-form full-backs in the world right now and, while he won’t have to deal with ex-Liverpool winger Diaz’s pace, he will still have to take on Olise or Serge Gnabry down his flank. Arsenal are unlikely to be nervous, though, given their own form which saw them smash Tottenham 4-1 in the North London Derby on Sunday.
Mikel Arteta is certainly excited by the challenge ahead of them. “For sure, this is the kind of game in the competition that we want to face, and we've been very consistent in both competitions; they have been as well, and tomorrow is a great test for us to see where we are,” he said.
“Every opponent brings different challenges. They are in a great moment. The level of consistency they show in resource, performance, in every metric that they have, it's very, very impressive. We know that, but that's a massive opportunity as well for us to show what we are capable of.”
The match may have been deprived of one of its star performers, but there are plenty of other battles to keep the fans entertained.