Arsenal went to one of the toughest grounds in Europe on Wednesday night and came away with a 2-2 draw against Bayern Munich.

The Bundesliga giants are now 40 games undefeated in Champions League group and league phase games at the Allianz Arena, while Arsenal themselves are on a 15-game run without losing at this stage.

Eberechi Eze’s opener and Declan Rice’s late equaliser meant Arsenal avoided defeat with a performance Arteta called “special”. Not everyone was convinced, though.

Troy Deeney left confused by Arsenal display

Speaking on CBS Sports, the former Watford striker felt Arsenal could have done better.

“I thought Arsenal could have been a lot better,” Deeney said. “When I watch Arsenal at their best, people call it boring, but they suffocate you just with their pressure. They let you have the ball, say, ‘Right, come on then. We’re going to break you down and we’re going to hit you on the counter attack.’ Today I thought they were kind of like what they did with Brighton, which was like, ‘We’re going to go man to man, open up.’

“When they get there, they look a bit confused. It was just a performance that left me confused with Arsenal. I thought that was a game Arsenal should win, and that’s a credit to Arsenal really, that I feel that they should have won the game.”

It says a lot about how far Arsenal have come that a draw away to Bayern can even be seen as two points dropped. But the idea that this was a game they should have won on paper is a strange one.

Before Wednesday, Bayern had played four home games this season and won the lot. They beat Stuttgart 5-1, Union Berlin 7-0 and RB Leipzig 6-1 in the Bundesliga, and thrashed Bodo/Glimt 5-0 in the Champions League. That’s 23 goals scored and two conceded.

And yes, they didn’t have Michael Olise or Joshua Kimmich, but Arsenal had absences too. William Saliba is their best defender and he has managed to keep Harry Kane at bay in recent meetings between the two. They didn’t have that luxury on Wednesday night. Bukayo Saka was also forced off early in the game, taking away their best attacking threat.

Arteta knew exactly what his side were walking into. “I watched all the games they’ve played here in the last three years and they batter every team with many goals,” he said. “So I really value and I’m really aware that what the boys have done tonight is special.”