We're back for another quickfire question round with SBNation's Arsenal blog, The Short Fuse. Giving us a hand is Paul DeBruler, just like last time. Give him a hand. Or better yet two. What's a guy gonna do with only one hand?
Bavarian Football Works: So, what's happened in Arsenal's life since we last saw you guys? Any new girlfriends we should know about?
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Paul DeBruler: If you believe the media and a certain section of the fanbase, Arsenal are entering their traditional February/March collapse. The truth, though, is a bit more nuanced than that (surprise!). They've had injuries - most recently, Jack Wilshere's broken foot-bone in a meaningless friendly last week - and both Mesut Ozil and Olivier Giroud have suffered a dip in form. So basically, Arsenal are going through one of those frustrating stretches that happens to every team every season. It's just that, for whatever reason, when Arsenal do it it's simultaneously a harbinger of doom, the end of the world, and a repeat of a highly predictable cycle, because of the inane thought process that is "Arsenal have gone nine years without a trophy", as if a trophy was a birthright.
Bavarian Football Works: How much will the Wojciech Szcezny red card impact the second leg of the tie?
PD: Not all that much, honestly.
Manuel AlmuniaLukasz Fabianski is a more than capable backup who has played well when called upon this season - he mostly plays in cups these days, but he'll be ready to go on Tuesday. He got off to a rough start
Bavarian Football Works: What gameplan do you see Arsenal using to breakdown Bayern Munich at home, given that they're down 2 goals?
PD: If you go back to the first 15 minutes of the first leg,you see what Arsenal are capable of against a team like Bayern - the quick, merciless movement, the creating of all kinds of space in which to put the ball, and the will to work that sometimes eludes Arsenal against lesser sides. Obviously, Arsenal will have to come out flying again - they've proven they're not intimidated by a trip to Munich in the past, and while this Bayern team is arguably better than that one, Arsenal won't be afraid to start at a million miles an hour again, and hopefully the result will be different in this leg.
PD: I feel like a class operation like Bayern would generally give something like Westvleteren 12, but Krombacher will do in a pinch.