Preview: Bayern vs. Arsenal · prediction, team news, line-ups

Bayern München host Arsenal at the Allianz Arena on Wednesday at 8pm BST in matchday three of the Champions League league phase.

The Bavarians sit 10th with four points. The Gunners are seventh with a perfect six.

Match preview

Bayern arrive in Europe with more questions than answers. They are 10th in the 36-team table with four points and a goal difference of +5, after a 5-0 home win and a 3-3 draw in Norway against Viking.

At the Allianz Arena, Vincent Kompany's side have scored five and conceded none in the league phase. Harry Kane has three goals and has scored in nine consecutive Champions League games for Bayern, according to Goal. Michael Olise has two, but he is suspended.

In the Bundesliga, the form is good with caveats. Bayern thrashed RB Leipzig 6-1 on Saturday, with Luis Diaz scoring a hat-trick, after a 2-2 draw at Augsburg. Before that came a 7-0 win over Union Berlin and a 2-1 victory at Elversberg.

Both of the recent draws came on the road and brought five goals conceded in total. That fragility away from Munich is the angle Arsenal may try to exploit.

Arsenal are seventh with six points and a goal difference of +4. They won 3-0 at home and 1-0 away, without conceding. Sports Mole describes them as the best defensive team in the competition.

Their limitation is in attack. Four goals in two games is the lowest total among the top 10 in the table. On Sunday they won 1-0 at Nottingham Forest through a Noni Madueke goal off the bench, having beaten Leeds 2-1 the weekend before.

Their only recent defeat was a 3-0 loss at Brighton on September 19. Against Lille, Timber, Eze and Saka scored inside seven minutes, handing Mikel Arteta's side a 14th successive league-phase win, according to Sports Mole.

The recent head-to-head favours the visitors. Arsenal won 3-1 at the Emirates on November 26, 2025, also in the league phase. Before that, Bayern won 1-0 in April 2024, eight days after a 2-2 draw. Bayern have won eight of 15 Champions League meetings to Arsenal's four, per ESPN. Kane has scored 15 goals in 22 games against Arsenal.

The context matters. With 36 teams in the table, every point on matchday three shapes the race for the eight automatic round-of-16 places. Arsenal can make a statement. Bayern need to fix their road inconsistency without leaving Munich.

Team news

Bayern are without Michael Olise, who is suspended after the double booking against Viking. He has 14 goal involvements in 10 games this season, per Sports Mole. Jamal Musiala remains out with a muscle injury, and T. Buchmann is sidelined with a knee problem.

Manuel Neuer is a doubt with a foot issue, so Jonas Urbig is expected to start in goal. Kim Min-jae came off with discomfort against Leipzig and is also a doubt, according to RotoWire. Lennart Karl should take the right flank in place of Olise, with Luis Diaz on the left and Saibari behind Kane.

Arsenal have three confirmed absentees: William Saliba (back), Piero Hincapie (ankle) and Christos Tzolis (hamstring). UEFA lists no doubts. Madueke is pushing to replace Eze, who was taken off at half-time at Nottingham, and Kai Havertz is the favourite to lead the line.