With a sharp twist of a Bavarian knife, Arsenal’s Champions League fairytale is done and dusted.
It has been a campaign full of learning curves for a squad that had reached the quarter-finals of Europe’s elite competition for the first time in 14 years. That’s a hell of a stat, isn’t it?
That inexperience certainly told against Bayern Munich.
Thomas Tuchel’s side have been far from perfect this season. They have missed out on winning the Bundesliga crown for the first time in 11 years. The winners? Granit Xhaka’s Bayer Leverkusen.
That said, in the Champions League Bayern are a different animal and their European pedigree shone through, notably on Wednesday night.
Truth be told, the damage was done at the Emirates nine days ago. A lapse in concentration from Gabriel and Jakub Kiwior led to Serge Gnabry finding the net before a clumsy challenge from William Saliba meant Harry Kane scored from the spot. Who else?
Arsenal rallied to seal a 2-2 draw but the second leg was a nervy affair that Mikel Arteta’s men never got into. It said a lot that star man Bukayo Saka couldn’t even create a single chance, nor did he have an effort on goal.
Joshua Kimmich’s goal was ultimately the difference as Kane and Co scampered off into the night with a semi-final place beckoning.
It will sting that Gnabry scored in the first leg – once of Arsenal colours – as too will the fact that Spurs’ record scorer found the net against them yet again.
On another day he’d have been turning out in the red or green of the Gunners.
Why Harry Kane left Arsenal
After goal upon goal was scored by the striker during his time with Tottenham, the adoring fans would sing one thing: “He’s one of our own!”
Except that’s not strictly true, is it? Kane actually rose through the ranks at Arsenal, playing in the Hale End academy before being let go as a boy.
It’s a tale of woe as far as the Gunners are concerned. The likes of Gnabry and Wojciech Szczesny may have moved onto greater pastures after being brought up through the academy in north London but there is perhaps no greater slip through the net than Kane.
So, why did they let him go? Well, the man behind the decision, Roy Massey, once told talkSPORT: “To release Harry Kane…we don’t have a crystal ball. If we did then we would be successful in every youngster that we take on.
“Harry was a lovely young player. He was quiet, shy, didn't have what we thought it would take to become a professional footballer and so we were totally mistaken."
It’s a moment in Kane’s career as a football that’s helped him become the man he is today.
He told the Telegraph that his rejection from Arsenal has only left him with a point to prove:
“I am the type of player who, throughout my career, has had points to prove along the way. I don’t think that ever leaves you. It will always be in my DNA, until I retire. There will always be a reason to prove someone wrong or to prove myself I can do something.
“I don’t think specifically back to that and think ‘I was released when I was nine years old, I really have to make a difference tomorrow.’ Now I am at Bayern Munich it is about being a top team in the Champions League. Of course I have history with them [Arsenal], but all I can do is try to help Bayern Munich.”
Well, the 30-year-old has now certainly left the decision-makers in N5 eating humble pie.
Kane scored 280 goals for Spurs during his time in the capital and came within a couple of seasons of beating Alan Sheerer to the honour of the Premier League’s all-time record scorer. If that wasn’t enough, he’s also found the net on 39 occasions since his mega-money move to Munich.
Games
21
Wins
8
Draws
6
Losses
7
Goals
15
Assists
2
He’s not the first to be let go at a young age, however, nor will he be the last. There is one more notable example though and he’s a Manchester United hero.
Arsenal let a Man Utd legend slip through the cracks
Kane will undoubtedly go down as one of Arsenal's biggest mishaps but their decision to get rid of a certain Andy Cole in 1992 should certainly sting those associated with the club in that era.
Cole resided in the club's academy during the latter stages of the 1980s before becoming professional in 1989 after leaving school.
Sadly for the forward, he only played once for the first team, appearing as a substitute in a First Division clash with Sheffield United in 1990.
Having failed to made the grade in north London, the forward moved to Bristol City in 1992 in a deal worth just £500,000, albeit that was a record fee for the Robins at the time.
A productive spell there ultimately saw Newcastle swoop in for his signature where he began his rise to becoming a true Premier League phenomenon. Having once again moved for a club's record fee, Cole was sublime in the northeast, scoring 68 goals in 83 appearances.
Games
21
Wins
6
Draws
3
Losses
12
Goals
3
Assists
3
What happened next? A move to Manchester United where the Arsenal academy product would score 121 times in 275 outings. An undoubted Old Trafford icon, he helped the Red Devils win five Premier League titles, two FA Cups and a Champions League for good measure.
Hanging up his boots in 2008, Cole did so having found the net on 187 occasions in the Premier League, enough to now rank him fourth on the all-time list. He sits 26 behind the aforementioned Kane, although it's safe to say there's only one winner when it comes to their haul of trophies.
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Said to have been "fantastic from day one" by the great Sir Alex Ferguson, Arsenal would no doubt have been kicking themselves that they let Cole slip through the net.
During his time with United, there was a real rivalry between the two clubs and it's undoubted that the Gunners would have been better off with him in their team. Sadly they did not learn from the error of their ways, subsequently allowing another Premier League icon in Kane to depart years later.
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