Bayern Munich manager Thomas Tuchel has boldly predicted Arsenal’s Champions League fate.
Despite admitting that his team’s chances of winning the Bundesliga title are over, he is confident they can knock the Gunners out of the Champions League.
Bayern Munich, the current Bundesliga champions, suffered a 2-0 home defeat to Borussia Dortmund last Saturday. This loss has left them 13 points behind league leaders Bayer Leverkusen with only seven games left.
On the other hand, Arsenal are just two points away from the top spot in the Premier League after their draw against Manchester City and Liverpool’s hard-fought victory over Brighton.
While Bayern’s domestic hopes might be dashed, their European dreams are still very much alive. Tuchel’s squad topped their group with 16 points out of a possible 18 and managed to overturn a first-leg deficit against Lazio in the round of 16.
Now, only Mikel Arteta’s stand stands between them and a place in the Champions League semi-finals. The Gunners made it through the last round after defeating FC Porto on penalties.
However, Tuchel remains hopeful despite his team’s dwindling league prospects.
When asked if the title race was over, he responded, “Yes, of course. This is clear. Naturally, I have no hope anymore.
No, no, no. After today’s game, I do not need to tell you anything more. How many points behind are we? 13? ” He then congratulated Leverkusen.
“That is not the first time that it happens to us and it’s not the first time we could bounce back with a crazy good performance,” the German added.
“That is basically the hope. It’s a bit strange, but that is actually it. If we are honest, we could not have to guarantee that if we perform today at highest level that we do this again at Heidenheim.
“This is our point for many, many months. We struggle to find this consistency.
“So today we didn’t find and now we prepare for Heidenheim. We are able to beat Arsenal even if today this is hard to believe. We have very different performances within a short period of time so this is not new to us.”
The winner of the tie between Bayern and Arsenal will be treated to a semi-final against the winner of Manchester City and Real Madrid. City beat Madrid in last season’s semi-finals, having lost to the same opponents the previous year.
