Arsenal went out of the Champions League this season after suffering a 3-1 defeat on aggregate to Bayern Munich, but the club could have taken something out of the match had they scored in the first leg. Mesut Ozil missed a crucial penalty within a few minutes into the first leg. Arsenal were then reduced to 10 men after the goalkeeper was sent off for a challenge on Arjen Robben, who has been criticised heavily by Arsene Wenger after the second leg. The Dutchman once again went down too easily twice in the box to try and get his team a penalty.
The first time he was not very lucky, as the referee refused to accept his demands. Later in the match, however, he gave a penalty for a challenge on Robben, which was not converted by Thomas Müller. Hence, the game finished as a 1-1 draw, but Bayern Munich progressed due to their 2-0 win at the Emirates in the first leg. Wenger criticised Robben by saying that he was a good driver and that the referee could have prevented such acts by booking him during the first instance. The comment is likely to draw a response from Robben, who has been in imperious form for club and country in the last 12 months.
“Robben is very good at getting the maximum of nothing and he is a great player and as well a very good diver, but it is part of it. He is a fantastic player, I would not deny that, he’s one of the best players in the world. But he gets in front of a player and then he slows down and goes down. He gets the free-kicks. Even UEFA has come out and said that they have to rethink that problem,” said Wenger after the encounter.