3 reasons why Arsenal can be happy with Bayern Munich draw

Arsenal fought back to draw 2-2 with Bayern Munich in the first leg of their quarter-final tie, having been 2-1 down at half-time.

The Gunners will be disappointed not to have won the game, especially considering they took an early 1-0 lead thanks to a great finish by Bukayo Saka, but should still be happy with the result. In a match that they controlled pretty well, there are reasons why Arsenal can be pleased with their draw.

While given Arsenal's early dominance and Ben White's glorious chance to double the Gunners' lead just minutes after Saka scored, there could be a feeling of "what if" around the team.

But thankfully away goals don't count, which leaves Arsenal still very much in the tie while giving them with it all to play for in Munich, a 2-2 draw isn't the worst thing in the world.

3 reasons why Arsenal can be happy with Bayern draw

1. Prevents cautious approach

As fans saw with the 0-0 draw at Manchester City last week, Arsenal may have been prompted to take a cautious approach to their second leg trip to Bayern if they had been victorious at home. The Allianz Arena is up there with the Etihad as one of the toughest places to go and the Gunners may very well have taken a similar approach, but their draw prevented this.

Bayern Munich has lost only twice at home all season, losing 1-0 to Werder Bremen and 2-0 to Borussia Dortmund, respectively. As a result, there could have been a shared belief among the Arsenal squad that if they had gone there with a lead, the best tactic would have been to sit back and protect said advantage.

This no doubt would have been a very risky approach on Arsenal's part and thankfully, the 2-2 draw at Emirates Stadium has prevented this. With the aggregate score level at the halfway point of the tie, the Gunners should now go into the game knowing they will need to give their all in order to get through to the semi-finals.

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