'An incredible match to watch' - Arteta hails Arsenal's battling draw at Bayern Munich

The Gunners matched one of Europe's strongest home sides in an entertaining contest, enjoying more possession and registering more shots than the German champions.

Bayern had won seven of their previous eight home matches in Europe, drawing the other, and had suffered just one defeat in their previous 31 Champions League games.

"It was an incredible match to watch," Arteta said. "Tough to go through it because the margins are so small. Two teams that want to put under pressure constantly, everything is man-to-man. Two teams that want to attack, they want to be dominant."

The Arsenal manager was particularly impressed with his players' approach from the opening whistle, despite the challenge of facing Bayern in Munich.

"I'm really impressed with the mindset and the quality that the team showed right from the beginning," he said. "To do that in this stadium against this team and to do what we've done right from the beginning was impressive."

Arsenal suffered an early setback when Bukayo Saka was forced off with an injury. Arteta admitted he was concerned about the winger's condition, although he could not confirm the extent of the problem.

"Really bad news. I don't know the extent of the injury, but it's certainly not something small," he said.

Eberechi Eze, who replaced Saka, opened the scoring for Arsenal before Bayern struck twice, either side of half-time, to take control of the match.

However, Arsenal refused to accept defeat, with Declan Rice producing an excellent finish to secure a deserved equaliser.

Arteta praised the response from his players and the impact of his substitutes as the visitors pushed for a winner.

"The team reacted incredibly well to again grab the game. The finishers came in, started to make a difference as well, scored a beautiful goal," he said.

Arsenal continued to attack in search of a late winner, coming close to completing an impressive comeback against a Bayern side that rarely loses at home in Europe.

Arteta believes the performance underlined Arsenal's progress, pointing to the difficulties other leading teams have experienced when visiting the German champions.

"The team wants to get the ball and attack to go and win the game. And we were very close to do it right at the end," he said.

"I've seen a lot of teams come here for three years and get absolutely battered, top teams. So, big credit to what the team and the boys have done tonight."

Arsenal will now turn their attention to the Premier League, with Arteta's side scheduled to host Everton at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday. 

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