Eagles' chessmates turn rivals: Eze vs. Olise as Arsenal await Bayern Munich in UCL classic

Arsenal vs. Bayern Munich on Wednesday night (11 pm) already sells itself - two unbeaten, perfect Champions League sides, two teams flying six points clear at home. But beneath the sparkle of a top-eight finish in the new league stage lies a far more personal duel: Eberechi Eze vs. Michael Olise, once partners in artistry at Crystal Palace, now rivals at the summit of European football.

Friends, creators… chess obsessives.

Back at Palace, Olise introduced Eze to the board, the openings, the mind-games. The pair spent hours bent over pawns and bishops at the training ground, forging a bond so strong it became visible on the pitch. Their numbers weren’t subtle either: eight goals combined, all assisted by Olise, all finished by Eze - a telepathy that Premier League defences never solved.

Eze even rode the hobby to a $20,000 win in an online chess tournament in May. But at the Emirates he'll need far more than openings theory to avoid being outmanoeuvred - because Olise arrives in London at the peak of his powers.

North London belongs to Arsenal and Eze! Gunners' #10 ruins Spurs with a hat-trick!

Since swapping Palace for Munich in a £50m move, the 23-year-old has detonated: Ballon d'Or nomination, France debut, Bundesliga title.

And now? A frightening season of nine goals and 10 assists in 18 games, including a weekend masterclass of two goals and three assists against Freiburg.

He's doubled his scoring output, nearly doubled his shot volume, and still creates 2.4 chances per match - Bayern's most unpredictable threat, and a player now delivering a goal or assist every 85 minutes.

Olise terrific again, Bayern score six goals against Freiburg

The kid once uncertain about media obligations now walks into the Emirates with a chance to remind England what they let go.

If Olise's rise has been meteoric, Eze's has been a climb - rejected by Arsenal as a teenager, turned away by multiple academies, rebuilt in the Championship, reborn at Palace, then rebought by Arsenal for £60m.

And what an arrival.

On Sunday, the boyhood Arsenal fan hit his first senior hat-trick, the first in a North London Derby since 1978, dismantling Spurs in a 4-1 rout.

No English player has more Premier League goal involvements in 2025 than Eze - 18, behind only Haaland, Salah and Mbeumo. He shoots more than anyone in Arsenal's squad, ranks sixth in the league for non-penalty contributions, and has found the freedom to be a pure goalscorer, even if he creates a bit less than at Palace.

They were teammates, creators, chess rivals, two faces of Palace's resurgence. Now they're key men for two of Europe's most in-form giants, set to collide with the last-16 in reach.

For 90 minutes all friendship dissolves. No more chess puzzles, no shared winks, no telepathy - just two elite forwards trying to make the decisive move.

At the Emirates, someone is going to deliver checkmate.

UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE - MATCHDAY 5

Tuesday

Ajax - Benfica 0-2 (0-1)

/Dahl 6, Barreiro 90/

Galatasaray - St. Gilloise 0-1 (0-0)

/David 57/

Bodo - Juventus 2-3 (1-0)

/Blomberg 27, Fet 87(p) - Openda 48, McKennie 59, David 90+1/

Chelsea - Barcelona 3-0 (1-0)

/Kounde 17(og), Estevao 55, Delap 73/

Dortmund - Villareal 4-0 (1-0)

/Guriassy 45+2, 54, Adeyemi 58, Svensson 90+5/

Manchester City - Leverkusen 0-2 (0-1)

/Grimaldo 23, Schick 54/

Napoli - Qarabag 2-0 (0-0)

/McTominay 65, Jankovic 72(og)/

Olympique Marseille - Newcastle 2-1 (0-1)

/Aubameyang 46, 51 - Barnes 6/

Slavia Praha - Athletic Bilbao 0-0

Wednesday

20.45: (1.35) Copenhagen (5.50) Kairat Almaty (10.0)

20.45: (5.10) Paphos (3.70) Monaco (1.70)

23.00: (2.25) Arsenal (3.65) Bayern (3.20)

23.00: (2.35) Atl.Madrid (3.50) Inter (3.20)

23.00: (2.60) Eintr.Frankfurt (3.50) Atalanta (2.85)

23.00: (1.35) Liverpool (5.80) PSV (9.00)

23.00: (7.20) Olympiakos (5.20) Real Madrid (1.42)

23.00: (1.37) PSG (5.10) Tottenham (7.75)

23.00: (1.70) Sporting (4.30) Club Brugge (4.80)

***odds are subject to change***