Why Serge Gnabry is vital to Bayern Munich’s ambitions of beating Arsenal

SB Nation

This guest post was written by Zach Lowy, Chief Editor and Social Media Manager of BreakingTheLines.com. Zach is a successful journalist and can be followed at @ZachLowy on X and ‪@zachlowy.bsky.social‬

on Bluesky. Zach’s work can also be found on FotMob, BetUS and others.

Bayern Munich are bracing themselves for their toughest match of the entire season, which will see them travel to North London and face off against Arsenal. The only team with a perfect UEFA Champions League record alongside Bayern and Inter Milan, Arsenal will be well aware that they can go top of the table with a victory.

Despite missing key figures like Gabriel Magalhães, Martin Ødegaard, Viktor Gyökeres, Gabriel Martinelli, Gabriel Jesus and Kai Havertz, Arsenal have gone up a level in recent weeks. Take away a world-class free kick from Liverpool’s Dominik Szoboszlai, and they have yet to lose all season. Since drawing to Manchester City, Arsenal would string together 10 wins on the bounce before conceding a last-second equalizer in a 2-2 draw at Sunderland, but they responded in stellar fashion with a 4-1 victory vs. Tottenham Hotspur. The Gunners sit six points clear atop the Premier League table, and it’s little surprise that leading journalists like Sid Lowe and Julien Laurens are tipping them to win their first league title in over two decades.

All things considered, it looks set to be a Herculean task for Bayern as they look to exploit an Arsenal defense that has conceded just 6 goals in 17 matches (including 0 in the UEFA Champions League). What’s more, they’re going to have to do so without Colombian winger Luis Díaz, who was sent off for his vicious scissors tackle against PSG’s Achraf Hakimi in their recent 2-1 win vs. Les Parisiens. So far, Díaz has been tasked with filling the void of summer exits Leroy Sané, Kingsley Coman, and Thomas Müller. With Díaz suspended, and with Jamal Musiala still working his way back from injury, Vincent Kompany doesn’t have a great deal of options in attack.

Of course, Harry Kane will start up top, whilst Michael Olise will operate on the right flank. But what about the other two positions? 17-year-old talent Lennart Karl is in red-hot form, having bagged four goals and an assist in his last three appearances for club and country, and we can expect to see him in the starting line-up. The other spot will come down between Nicolas Jackson and Serge Gnabry, and there’s reason to believe that it will be the latter who will come out on top.

Born in Stuttgart, Gnabry left Germany in 2011 for England, where he rose through the ranks at Arsenal’s academy. However, he never quite managed to break into the first team due to heightened competition, injury issues, and an unsuccessful loan spell at West Bromwich Albion. Instead, after excelling at Werder Bremen and Hoffenheim, Gnabry started a new chapter with Bayern Munich in 2018, where he has gone on to win five Bundesliga titles and a UEFA Champions League title, as well as two DFB-Pokal titles.

With 97 goals and 65 assists in 300 appearances, it’s undeniable that Gnabry has been a bargain signing for Bayern. Similarly to other players like Ousmane Dembélé, Carlos Alberto Pintinho, and Raphinha, Gnabry thrives at knocking the ball past his opponent and using his two-footedness and impressive ball control to his advantage, as well as trapping long balls with a cool first touch. He has mastered the art of ghosting into the penalty box and working his way into a dangerous scoring position before calmly striking the ball with the perfect amount of precision and power.

Unlike Jackson, who has failed to provide a goal contribution in his three appearances vs. Arsenal (two draws and a defeat), Gnabry came up decisive in his sole appearance vs. the Gunners. Back in last year’s UEFA Champions League quarterfinal, Gnabry scored after timing his last-man run to perfection and sprinting towards the penalty spot before sliding in the equalizer – Bayern would go on to book their ticket for the final four at the expense of the Gunners.

It’s no secret that football players, for whatever reason, are far more inclined to find the back of the net vs. their former club than usual. For Gnabry, there will be extra motivation; he won’t just be showing Arsenal what they could’ve had, but he’ll also be playing for a new contract extension. His current deal is set to expire on June 30, 2026, but if Gnabry can step up with another big-time display vs. Arsenal, then Bayern may have no other choice but to extend his deal and give him some much-needed long-term security.

Having missed out on the weekend’s 6-2 win vs. Freiburg due to a knock, Kompany will be hoping to have Gnabry back at his disposal as he looks to come out on top against a stingy Arsenal backline. At 30 years of age, Gnabry is demonstrating that he’s still got plenty of oil left in the tank, and he could very well end up being the difference between a victory and a defeat in North London on Wednesday.

This guest post was written by Zach Lowy, Chief Editor and Social Media Manager of BreakingTheLines.com. Zach is a successful journalist and can be followed at @ZachLowy on X and ‪@zachlowy.bsky.social‬ on Bluesky. Zach’s work can also be found on FotMob, BetUS and others.

You can also read some of Zach’s other work below:

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