Harry Kane escapes red card for elbow on Gabriel on eventful return to Arsenal

Harry Kane scored a penalty and avoided a red card on his return to face Arsenal after catching Gabriel Magalhaes with a swinging elbow during Bayern Munich’s Champions League quarter-final first leg draw at the Emirates.

The former Tottenham striker was booked by the Swedish referee Glenn Nyberg after his right arm made contact with Gabriel underneath the Brazilian’s jaw when backing up to contest an aerial challenge.

Kane protested his innocence and said the contact was accidental, but Arsenal wanted a more significant punishment and appealed for a straight red card after Gabriel was left on the turf holding his face.

The incident was not reviewed by VAR, much to the frustration of the Arsenal fans.

It came after Kane converted a first-half penalty to become the leading scorer against Arsenal at the Emirates, on what was the England captain’s first return to north London since leaving Tottenham last summer.

Kane’s penalty put Bayern’s 2-1 up before half-time after Serge Gnabry equalised against his former side. Leandro Trossard then salvaged a draw for Arsenal, while there was plenty of late penalty drama as the night finished level before next week’s return leg in Munich.

Kane has now scored six times at the Emirates, with his previous five goals coming for Spurs. Kane also holds the record for the most goals scored in the north London derby and said it wasn’t just the Bayern fans who he was performing for on his return to face the Gunners.

“I think they have a soft respect for me,” he said of Arsenal fans who were goading him during his interview on TNT Sports. “I know there wasn’t just Bayern Munich fans watching this game tonight, so maybe there was a little bit more pressure. It is always a tough game.

“I have done a bit of research of the penalties against Porto, he (David Raya) was reading it into the corners early so I had to change my style a little bit. It was nice to see him go early and make it easy for me.”

The Champions League represents Kane’s last chance of ending his long wait for silverware, with Bayer Leverkusen set to wrap up the Bundesliga title and Bayern out of the German Cup.

Kane has scored 39 goals in 38 matches during his first season in Germany and said: “It’s been an amazing experience, of course the league hasn’t gone the way I or the club would have wanted it to go, but for me personally it has been an amazing experience. To see a different culture, to see a different league, it has been a great step in my career.

“The league has gone this year but I am at Munich for a long time and I know we will come back stronger.”