Alert – Arsenal vs Bayern Munich – Champions League quarter-final LIVE: Live score, team news and updates as Gunners look to end hoodoo against German giants

You can already hear the Arsenal fans from the tunnel.

The Emirates is bouncing. You could tell that it would be from the outside, and now the stadium is ready for the big night ahead.

The teams are out, the infamous Champions League anthem is played, and the excitement is through the roof.

I’m itching for kick-off now!

Thomas Tuchel, Bayern Munich boss, speaking to TNT Sports:

Everyone is aware this is a different Arsenal side than last matches, still, there is always a bit of expectation we should win quarter-final, semifinal, Champions League but this is natural in this club having won many times.

I feel it is a privilege to be in the last eight and should not forget that. I think Arsenal waited 14 years for quarter-final so it became normal for us which is a good thing but today is the day for us to prove a point.

Excitement is starting to build.

Both sides have gone through their warm-ups, so you know what that means, we aren’t far from kick-off.

The 15 minutes between the conclusion of the preparations and the start of the game is when anticipation is at it’s highest.

I always love this period!

Owen Hargreaves, 2008 Champions League winner with Man United, speaking on TNT Sports:

This Arsenal team reminds me of the United team men and Rio [Ferdinand] played in [that won the Champions League in 2008].

Well, we were very lucky. We were blessed, we had everything. We could play the possession game, we could out-score you, Defensively, we were very good. Good on set-pieces, this Arsenal team for the first time in a decade, I don’t think they have a weakness. They can play in any style and I don’t think they’ll fear Bayern Munich.

They can be confident, they’re the better team right now. Looking at those teams, they’ll probably show it. They’ll be full of belief and this crowd is in for a treat tonight.

Arsenal fans have had their attempt at intimidating Harry Kane.

Did it work? I guess time will tell, but probably not. Of course, they had to pull out their best song… ‘Arsenal, Arsenal, Arsenal’.

I’m going to predict that chant will be sung 14 times tonight. I wish they sang something more creative.

At least the team is good at football, we aren’t in the music industry!

Eric Dier is certainly confident in his own ability.

As a footballer, you have to have a certain swagger about you to be successful, you’ve got to walk the line of confidence and cockiness.

Well, Dier believes in himself at the moment. During an appearance of the Overlap Podcast, he stated that he ‘should be a part’ of the current England set-up.

I must admit, when thinking of England’s future, Eric Dier has not been a player I’ve thought of.

However, that doesn’t mean he won’t have a part to play for the Three Lions in the future. He’s got his chance to impress back in England tonight against the Gunners.

Could he be a wildcard for Euro 2024?

Arsenal fans are up for it tonight.

Anyone who follows the Gunners knows how big tonight is for the club, and the fans are going to do all they can to help their team.

They have the whole stadium to themselves and I feel the fans will create a special atmosphere inside the ground this evening.

The songs are already being sung.

Rio Ferdinand, 2008 Champions League winner with Man United, speaking on TNT Sports:

You dream of these moments here. These are career-defining moments. This is a season-defining moment for the club. This is bigger than just tonight as well. This is about the Champions League tonight, but results here tonight can impact the end of the season when silverware has been handed out.

So there’s so much riding on it, which means more pressure, but an even bigger, bigger game for us to come and be a part of and you can feel the tension already.

Mikel Arteta said his side have ‘a big task’ ahead of them tonight, and he certainly knows what it feels like.

The Spanish manager was one of the unfortunate players to feel the wrath of a dominant Bayern Munich back in 2013.

They aren’t as good as they used to be now though…

Mikel Arteta, Arsenal manager, speaking on Monday:

We’re really enjoying the moment; this is where we want to be. We’re in a really good position in the Premier League and we’re in a really good position in the Champions League. We have a big task ahead of us against one of the most successful teams in Europe and that’s the hurdle we have to overcome, and we are looking forward to it.

They’re a tough team. I’m a big fan, a big admirer of Thomas [Tuchel], his teams, the way they settle and play, the way they transmit. I learn a lot about him and looking at Bayern and when you are analysing this league, you see why they are a top team. We have prepared very well, and we have to take our game where we want it, and if we do that, we have a chance to win.

Arsenal’s Champions League heritage is far from prestige.

The Gunners are still yet to taste Champions League glory and got knocked out seven campaigns in a row in the round of 16 between 2011 and 2017.

However, this Arsenal team is different to those that failed in years gone by, they have proved this season that they have the mental strength to go far in this competition.

They’re a team that no one likes to face these days, they strike fear into their opponents and have now been branded one of the favourites to win the competition.

So, what do you think, are they legitimate contenders?

This is a very strong Arsenal side.

On a hue night, Mikel Arteta has made two changes from the side that ran out 3-0 winners at Brighton.

Gabriel Martinelli and Jakub Kiwior come into the side with Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko dropping to the bench.

The Tottenham lads are in town.

Harry Kane and Eric Dier both return to the home of their former rivals and start.

Can this Bayern Munich 11 cause an upset?

As we get closer to the team news, the atmosphere is building at the Emirates.

Bayern have arrived, and so have a lot of Arsenal fans, excitement is certainly building in north London.

A big night in store.

Oliver Holt, Mail Sport Chief Sports Writer, at the Emirates:

It feels as if the biggest hurdle Arsenal have to overcome tonight is themselves. For much of the past two decades, they have developed an inferiority complex in the Champions League but when they run out against Bayern Munich this evening, they need to believe that they are one of the best teams in Europe again. Perhaps even THE best team in Europe.

They are top of the best league in Europe and they are favourites to win tonight. They need to go out and play like the elite team they have become.

Here they are!

The Arsenal players have arrived for one of the club’s biggest fixtures in over a decade.

Which 11 will be the lucky ones to start tonight?

We will find out very soon.

Arsenal and Bayern Munich both had to come from behind in the round of 16 to secure their places in the last eight.

Both sides’ paths to the quarter-finals have been fairly similar. Both sides topped their group, both went 1-0 down in the first leg, and both turned their ties around in the second to win at home.

The similarity of their Champions League will end here though as they battle it out for a semi-final place against either Real Madrid or Man City.

How different will these stats look by the end of the night?

Aadam Patel, Mail Sport, has been down at the Emirates prior to kick-off tonight to speak to the Gunners fans.

It seems that the confidence is certainly there that Arsenal can turn Bayern Munich over.

You can’t blame them!

The mood in the Arsenal camp is sky-high right now, and that includes the fanbase.

Speaking prior to tonight’s big match, Arsenal captain, Martin Odegaard, has called for their fans to bring the noise.

We will have the whole stadium as well tonight, so hopefully that can make a big difference in our favour, and it’s up to us to take full advantage of that. We know you’ll be bringing the noise and making the whole stadium red because big games like this are what everyone wants to be involved in. We’re looking forward to another memorable night for us, another full house, and if we can create the atmosphere we had for the Porto game, then it will be an amazing occasion.

If tonight’s task wasn’t already difficult for Bayern Munich, they won’t even have any fans there to cheer them on.

UEFA banned Bayern Munich dans from attending tonight’s match due to their supporters’ throwing fireworks onto the pitch during their match against Lazio in March.

So, this is certainly something Arsenal can use to their advantage tonight. The Emirates will be a cauldron of noise come kick-off.

I’m sorry to have to remind you of this Arsenal fans…

I think it’s fair to say when you think of these two sides facing off, you think of all the 5-1 defeats Arsenal have suffered at the hands of Bayern in recent times.

The Gunners have lost their past three games against Bayern by the aforementioned scoreline. Not happy reading.

The Gunners have been knocked out by the German Champions on all five occasions they have met in the Champions League knockout stages.

However, tonight you just feel that run of poor form could come to an end – well I do anyway.

Arsenal are rightly the favourites.

Now, back to matters on the pitch.

An old enemy returns to the Emirates tonight, Tottenham’s all-time top scorer Harry Kane. The former Spurs captain loved a game against Arsenal, and I’m sure he wasn’t expecting to return against his old rivals so soon after moving to Germany.

Kane has scored 14 goals in 19 appearances against Arsenal, with five of them coming at the Emirates which is the joint-most goals scored by a visiting player at the ground.

The England captain is still in search of his first silverware in senior football, and with all German domestic trophies pretty much out of reach, the Champions League is his last option this season.

I’m sure he would love to be the person to ruin Arsenal’s chances of a first Champions League trophy.

Security will be increased tonight at the Emirates, as well as all Champions League fixtures this week after an ISIS media outlet shared a post on social media with a threat towards all stadiums hosting Champions League quarter-final first legs.

The Metropolitan Police have said they are ‘aware of the threat and that a ‘robust policing plan’ was in place for tonight’s match.

Spanish and French ministers have also revealed security will be stepped up with all games going ahead as planned.

Deputy Assistant Commissioner Ade Adelekan has reassured the public that the Met police are prepared and will ‘work closely’ with Arsenal’s security team to ensure tonight’s fixture passes ‘peacefully’.

Bayern Munich fans will be willing this season to end as soon as possible.

Well, that is unless they can defy the odds and win the Champions League. Far less impressive teams have managed the feat in the past.

Thomas Tuchel’s side are just one game away from relinquishing their Bundesliga dominance and have been knocked out of all domestic competition.

So yes, the odds are stacked against a poor Bayern side who just can’t seem to find form, but they still have the know-how of how to navigate this competition.

Harry Kane will obviously be key for them, while Joshua Kimmich and Thomas Muller – among others – were part of the team that secured the Champions League trophy in 2020.

They will need to call on that experience if they are to get past Arsenal.

I said it on Saturday night, and I’ll say it today, something special is brewing at Arsenal.

Mikel Arteta’s men have had their doubters throughout the season but have shown their maturity in the title race this season, which was epitomised in their impressive 3-0 win away at Brighton.

They sit top of the Premier League, due to a better goal difference than Liverpool, but tonight is a chance for them to show they can handle the pressure in Europe too.

The Champions League is a completely different ball game, many teams who have dominated in their respective league have struggled to translate that form in Europe.

While many people are expecting the Gunners to sweep aside Bayern Munich due to the differences in form, the Bavarian side still have several players that can cause them problems, including Harry Kane.

Form can go out the window in the Champions League knockout stages, so Arsenal will have to make sure they are in top form tonight.

It’s set to be a belter.

Arsenal fans have waited 15 years for a night like this.

Gunners’ fans have not seen their side partake in a Champions League quarter-final since 2010, but tonight the wait ends as Mikel Arteta’s side take to the Emirates turf to face Bayern Munich.

Recent history does not favour Arsenal, but their form does, while you can not say the same about the German Champions.

However, Bayern do have a player in their ranks that has struck fear into the Gunners in the past. That player is Harry Kane, the former Tottenham captain returns to north London tonight.

It’s certainly a big night for Arsenal – we will see if they are truly the real deal in Europe – this is their biggest test yet.

Let’s get started then!