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The head coach of the Munich club, Felix Magath, says he is happy to have kept the German hopes alive this season in Europe. His team, in the first stage of the Champions League knockout phase, eliminated London.
Although Bayern lost 0-1 at Highbury Stadium, they advanced to the next stage with an overall 3-2 victory. Munich club remains the only German representative in European football arenas this year.
"One German team made it to the next stage," Magath said at a press conference. "Overall, making it to the quarterfinals is good for all of us. However, it's not pleasant that we are the only ones advancing. I wish that our competitors in the German championship - Bremen, Leverkusen, and Gelsenkirchen - were still playing."
Magath, whose team leads the Bundesliga due to a better goal difference, said he never doubted that they would beat the English champions, even though Arsenal sharpened the situation by scoring the only goal in the 66th minute.
"I never thought we would not win," Magath said. "Although it was clear that our best forward, Roy Makaay, would not be able to play. We are strong even without him. In the last few games, we showed that we have a reliable defense, and I was confident that we could do it."
Meanwhile, disappointed Arsenal coach Arsene Wenger said that his players made their chances too complicated in the first game but acknowledged that the better team won.
"Of course, it's disappointing, but I feel that we lost to a really good opponent with a strong team who now believe in themselves," Wenger said. "They gradually wore us down. We scored at the right time, but we didn't create a real chance for the second goal. We gave everything, but we lost to a good team, and in assessing both these games, it can't be said that they didn't deserve to advance. We lost in the away game - what killed us was how we allowed them to score in the first match."
