Bayern Munich CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge has warned his players that they must be respectful and show humility against Arsenal on Tuesday night.
The Gunners are having a miserable time of it on and off the pitch, and this ‘act of mercy’ if you like will be most welcome as they look to overturn a damaging deficit.
Having dropped out of the top four in the Premier League at the weekend with the defeat to Liverpool, combined with question marks being raised about Alexis Sanchez’s future after he was benched, a visit from Bayern after their 5-1 defeat in the first leg isn’t exactly what Arsenal would have wanted this week.
Nevertheless, that is what is facing them at the Emirates on Tuesday, but Rummenigge has warned the German giants that they go to London to finish off the job in a professional and respectful manner.
“The door is open, but we have to go through it now, seriously and respectfully,” he told Bild.
“We have to be humble, we did so in 2013 under Jupp Heynckes and so we are going to do it again. Quietly and objectively and seriously play the opponents in the hope that we are there in May or maybe even in June.”
It’s a classy response from the Bayern chief as Arsenal are in a tough spot, and while they will be ruthless in their bid to get through to the next round, it’s clear that the respect is still there as they look to avoid any complacency moving forward.
It’s an unlikely result, but Arsenal will still enter this game with hope of pulling off a stunning comeback. If they could, it would be a huge turning point for Arsene Wenger and his players.