Script flipped: 3 reasons Arsenal will finally break its Bayern burden

As sure as the sun will shine, Arsenal has drawn Bayern Munich in the Champion League last-16.

Three times since 2005, the Gunners have locked horns with the mighty Bavarians at this same stage, and all three times, the north London outfit have sampled the repugnant taste of defeat.

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It's the fourth time in five years that the two have faced each other at some stage of the Champions League.

When Arsenal finishes second in a group, it draws Bayern. When Arsene Wenger's lot finally tops a group, it draws Bayern. One would have to think if by some miracle Arsenal found itself in the Europa League one day, that Carlo Ancelotti's side would drop down to the continent's second-tier tourney in spite of the Gunners.

Few clubs in Europe are creatures of habit in the same form as Arsenal: the football is always rife with panache, and at moments Arsene Wenger's lot appear world beaters. That sometimes unintentional dalliance with style over substance has seen Arsenal bounced from the last-16 in each of the last six seasons.

That said, something feels different this year.

"There's just something about us this season, we tend to just get results."

Theo Walcott said that after Saturday's 3-1 victory over Stoke City, and in his 11th season with the club, few would know better than he.

Sitting second in a hotly contested Premier League with just one defeat, and only three points adrift of a Chelsea squad on a nine-match winning streak, if there was an Arsenal squad to finally overcome Bayern Munich, it's this one.

Here's a look at three reasons why this could be the year Arsenal finally overcomes its Bavarian burden:

Arsenal appear a side that gets results

With just one league defeat this campaign - a 4-3 goal-fest on the opening day against Liverpool when Wenger fielded a makeshift squad - Arsenal has gotten results even when not playing well.

In prior seasons, points dropped to lesser opponents have defined futile title ambitions, though this season, things have been different both domestically and on the continent. Look no further than Laurent Koscielny's contentious last-second winner at Burnley, Olivier Giroud's 89th-minute point-thievery against Manchester United, and Mesut Ozil's late winner at Ludogorets.

Intangibles abound, Arsenal also boasts an excess of riches in terms of squad depth. Shkodran Mustafi's addition and subsequent seamless pairing with Koscielny has solidified the backline, while competition for first-team spots all over the park has bred an ambitious spirit at the Emirates.

Fancy a defensive-minded left-back? Opt for Nacho Monreal. Prefer some pace? Give Kieran Gibbs the start. There are examples like this throughout Wenger's squad, and that should be reason enough for faith this season in the face of shameless doubt.

Ancelotti's Bayern has its faults

For those pegging Bayern to take the two-leg tilt without much trouble, Jupp Heynckes and Pep Guardiola aren't walking through that door.

Carlo Ancelotti's Bayern Munich is an animal of a different breed than Guardiola's adventurous, attack-minded lot, and its shown, with two defeats over the last three weeks. The first, to Borussia Dortmund, was excusable. The second, to Russian minnow Rostov, was dire, especially considering the strength of the starting XI put out by the cup-winning Italian.

In simplistic terms, what's changed under Ancelotti?

For one, Bayern appears to put more of an emphasis on defending, and while there's no fault in that approach, it leaves Ancelotti's lot vulnerable to counter-attacks. Imagine for a moment Sanchez running at a lethargic Mats Hummels against the run of play, and it's facile to see how Arsenal has a chance.

Pair that with Bayern's tendency to appear strangely flat this season under Ancelotti, and Arsenal could turn the screw given the opportunity.

Thomas Muller looks out of form, finally scoring his first league goal on the weekend, and the wings aren't as lethal this campaign as last year in which a healthy Kingsley Coman and free-spirited Douglas Costa deputised admirably for Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben, respectively.

Easy to forget that for the first time since 2011-12, Arsenal won its group, and will have the advantage of hosting the second leg at home.

Stranger things have happened in Europe.

The Sanchez factor

At the start of the campaign, the Wenger Out crowd cursed the Frenchman for not signing a marquee striker under the illusion that Alfredo Di Stefano could have be exhumed and signed before the transfer window slammed shut.

As Lucas Perez quietly made the Islington switch, Wenger did the unconventional, and slid the tireless Alexis Sanchez into the No. 9 hole.

Sage decision, that.

Sanchez, who runs in his sleep, has been nothing short of dazzling this year. His 13 goals and eight assists in all competitions are among Europe's best, but perhaps more importantly, he has proven to be a handful for defenders. Surely Mats Hummels and Jerome Boateng saw the draw and cursed their fortune.

For all of his efforts and poise in front of goal, Sanchez's greatest quality may be how he combines with his fellow attackers.

The Chilean's work among an attacking four with Ozil, Walcott, and some combination of the Alexes, Iwobi, and Oxlade-Chamberlain, has defined Arsenal's season.

Ozil has turned into a goal-machine, Walcott and Chamberlain are having career years, and Iwobi's ability to find channels between the midfield and back four has been vital to the club's successes.

With Danny Welbeck slated for a new-year return, Giroud scoring at an obscenely efficient rate, and Perez bagging trebles for fun, Arsenal boasts depth in attack it hasn't had since the Invincibles of 2003-04.

When Arsenal was bounced by Pep Guardiola's Bayern in 2014, Yaya Sanogo was the lone striker. Safe to say things have changed for the better.