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The London side needed a strong performance and positive outcome against a European powerhouse, but Renée Slegers’s side surrendered their two-goal lead and all three points to Bayern Munich with little resistance, casting their European campaign into difficult waters.

Contrasting Outcomes from Last Season

In the previous campaign, a battling comeback from 2-1 down to a narrow win over Bayern in their last group stage match made up for their opening 5-2 loss to the Bavarian side and ignited their phenomenal run to the final. It marked a turning point in their season, demonstrating a mental toughness that propelled them to a European triumph. Their breakdown here showed they are still searching for the spirit that ensured success in May.

Travelling Supporters in Germany

More than 400 Arsenal fans had made the trip to Munich, many gathering at the Hofbräuhaus before the game for their pre-match meet-up. They were shoved into a section of the middle tier at the Allianz Arena, but still created an atmosphere, battling against the impressive home crowd of over 15,000 that brought the noise in the lower tier.

Learning from Previous Performance

The Arsenal goalkeeper had said her team had "showed everything we had" in their 1-1 draw with Chelsea on Saturday. They were "devastated" by the outcome against the league leaders, with controversial officiating receiving much criticism of those disappointments.

The aim, though, was to take the energy of that strong performance after halftime to Germany with them. Arsenal had begun poorly against Chelsea. In Munich they executed their strategy and there was no repeat of that slow start.

Strong Start for Arsenal

They started aggressively. The England forward was especially lively and caused problems for the Bayern full-back their left-back and the midfielder Japanese international on the right as Arsenal's intense pressure proved effective.

It was the forward's attempt that ensured Arsenal took the lead in the fifth minute, the striker's effort unusually parried by the Bayern goalkeeper, the German shot-stopper. Fox was there to head it back over the goalkeeper and in.

Doubling the Lead

Arsenal's next score arrived midway through the half. Bayern's determination to play out from the back had been dangerous and was capitalized on. Mead intercepted Stine Ballisager's stray pass and laid off to Stina Blackstenius, who directed it towards Mariona Caldentey on the penalty area. The mercurial midfielder took a touch to alleviate pressure from the defender before lashing past the goalkeeper.

Second Half Turnaround

The energy lessened a little in the second half. The Bayern coach turned to his bench to try to get his team back into the game: the ex-London striker Danish international, whose three goals in October 2024 took the game from 2-2 to 5-2, entered and Arianna Caruso and Turkish talent followed shortly. The last of these would make Arsenal sweat first, sprinting forward and collecting from Klara Bühl before guiding the ball past Van Domselaar.

Complete Comeback

It was Bayern in the ascendancy after the gap narrowed, the home team sensing they could get a result from the game. The substitute produced, clipping a looping ball in from the penalty box to equalize. They did not just want to draw, though: they wanted everything, and shortly after they had the advantage, Glodis Viggosdottir scoring at the near post from the winger's delivery. This time it was a sluggish end that disappointed Arsenal and, with one win from their European matches, they have a major challenge ahead.