Joshua Kimmich hailed an "outstanding" night after scoring the only goal in FC Bayern's decisive Champions League quarter-final second leg win at home to Arsenal. "It means a lot to me," added head coach Thomas Tuchel from the catacombs of a sold-out Allianz Arena. "It's an important step. Semi-finals, last four. It was a lot of fun." Captain Manuel Neuer, meanwhile, praised the record champions' attitude. "The discipline we showed on the day was key to us winning the match and reaching the semi-finals," he explained. "I'm happy and satisfied." fcbayern.com rounds up the rest of the reaction...
Reaction to the quarter-final second leg
Herbert Hainer: "Overall, we saw two good games - this week and last. I don't think anyone thought we'd progress against Arsenal. In the first half, I had the feeling that Arsenal were the stronger side. In the second half, I felt we were. In the end, we deserved to win 1-0, and that's testament to the strengths of the team. Now we're just delighted to be in the last four of the Champions League. Thomas Tuchel and the team did an excellent job today."
Jan-Christian Dreesen: "It's a fantastic feeling. It's four years since we were last in the semi-finals. We put ourselves in a good position after the first leg in London. There weren't many chances at either end in the first half, but I think we earned it in the second half. We were more effective and had the better chances."
Thomas Tuchel: "It means a lot to me. It's an important step. Semi-finals, last four. It was a lot of fun. It was a bit of a chess game from both teams in the first half. Who would make the first mistake? It was a really strong showing in the second half. We showed personality and courage, and deserved to win. I'm really proud of the team. We knew we'd only get it done by staying compact because Arsenal rely on the team performance, rather than individual quality. Overall, we did a very, very good job as a team today."
Manuel Neuer: "We played very well today and gave little away. The discipline we showed on the day was key to us winning the match and reaching the semi-finals. I'm happy and satisfied. They're always special games, special nights in the Champions League, especially at the Allianz Arena. And you can see what we're capable of. Tonight was one of those nights. We needed the fans to get behind us. It paid off."
Joshua Kimmich: "Outstanding! The second half, in particular, was very, very good. We could have scored one or two more goals. At the end of the day, if you take both games into account, especially today, we deserve to go through. Both teams were very nervous in the first half. Nobody wanted to take any risks. You could tell Arsenal wanted to control the game, but were afraid of our counter-attacks. We made a very good start to the second half, with a very good chance for Leon Goretzka, and a number of dangerous attacks after that. We played much better in the second half and with more determination, and deserved to progress."
Reaction from the Arsenal camp
Mikel Arteta (head coach): "It was a chess match. We dominated the first half, but we waited for mistakes to happen and Bayern did the same. We needed an element of discipline in certain areas before we could land the decisive blow, but we didn't really have those moments. We also should have defended the penalty area better for their goal. You have to do that at this level, if you want to reach the last four. We were close, but congratulations to Bayern for going through."
Read the match report below:
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