Major Arsenal flaw exposed in Bayern loss as Mikel Arteta seeks transfer solution

It will be no consolation for Arsenal that, for once, they kept Harry Kane down at the Allianz Arena last night.

So often Arsenal’s tormentor, Kane was restricted to one decent chance, a deflected volley which flew past the post in the first half, but Bayern Munich still progressed to the Champions League semi-finals.

Arsenal were undone not by Kane, but by one defensive lapse and their own lack of a top-class striker to compare to the England captain.

Mikel Arteta’s side were tidy in possession and showed the occasional flash of quality, but there was no menace in the final third, no spark likely to shift the course of a cagey game against a well-drilled and experienced side.

“It was a game that you could see either an error or an individual or magic moment that would decide the tie,” said Arteta afterwards.

“The margins are so small. It wasn’t enough, that was true, to get the magic moment that is needed in this competition, to unlock it, to make something happen when the game requires us to open that door. We didn’t have it and that’s why we’re out.”

Kai Havertz moved back up front as Arsenal’s false nine, but the German is no killer in front of goal and more of a smart, tactical cog than a maverick capable of providing the kind of “magic” Arteta was talking about.

Gabriel Jesus, who started through the middle in the damaging 2-0 defeat by Aston Villa at the weekend, shone in the Champions League group stage but offered little in the way of extra threat when he came on shortly after Bayern’s goal, while Eddie Nketiah was a late substitute in a final roll of the dice.

Jesus briefly looked like an elite striker when he joined Arsenal, but a return of just four Premier League goals this season has underlined his limitations as a finisher — albeit he has been playing through the pain and may need further surgery in the summer.

When Arsenal were scoring freely in January and February, it was easy to wonder if all the talk about their need for a centre-forward was misguided; had Arteta found a way to produce a world-class team without needing a world-class No9?

But a costly week, which could define Arsenal’s season, has exposed their shortcomings in the final third, making it plainer than ever why Arteta is prioritising a new forward in the summer.