Kimmich heads Bayern past Arsenal into Champions League semis

Bayern Munich’s German goalkeeper #01 Manuel Neuer (2L), Bayern Munich’s German forward #25 Thomas Mueller (4L), Bayern Munich’s Cameroonian forward #13 Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting and team mates celebrate with fans at the end of the UEFA Champions League quarter-final second leg football match between FC Bayern Munich and Arsenal FC in Munich, southern Germany on April 17, 2024. – Bayern Munich won the match 1-0. (Photo by Michaela STACHE / AFP)

A 63rd-minute Joshua Kimmich header gave Bayern Munich a 1-0 win over Arsenal and a place in the Champions League semi-finals on Wednesday.

The 3-2 aggregate quarter-final victory means Bayern return to the last-four for the first time since winning the title in 2020.

Bayern will face either Manchester City or Real Madrid for a place in the final.

The result continues a poor week for Arsenal, who conceded top spot in the Premier League table on Sunday with their first league loss of 2024.

“We can enjoy this one. The first half was cagey and then we upped the tempo,” Bayern striker Harry Kane told TNT.

“These games are tough and we had to find our way through them.

“It’s going to be a tough semi final whoever we play.”

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta said his side had “wanted it so badly”.

“However, you can see with many other clubs that sometimes it takes six or seven years to get to that stage. We were very close, that is the reality.”

Unlike last week’s four-goal spectacle in London, Wednesday’s match was a cagey affair, with few clear chances for either side in a testy opening half.

Midway through the second-half and with extra-time on the horizon, Kimmich burst through the Arsenal box and headed in a perfect Raphael Guerreiro chip.

Guerreiro, pushed from wing-back to the forwards due to Bayern’s