Serge Gnabry's Revealing Reason for Celebration After Scoring Against Former Club Arsenal

Serge Gnabry showed no hesitation in celebrating his equalizer for Bayern Munich against his former club, Arsenal, on Tuesday night.

In the 18th minute, Gnabry stretched to fire in the goal that leveled the score at 1-1, following Bukayo Saka's earlier strike for Arsenal with a superb curling finish. The German forward showcased his skill by beating Ben White and goalkeeper David Raya.

Despite his five-year stint at Arsenal during the early stages of his professional career not panning out as expected, Gnabry still maintains a connection with the Gunners. However, this did not deter him from using his signature celebration: holding one hand flat while pinching the other hand above it.

Gnabry has previously explained that his celebration was inspired by NBA star James Harden. "There's a video on YouTube where he's cooking after dropping, I think, a buzzer-beater and won the game," Gnabry explained to fcbayern.tv. "So he was cooking, stirring it up, and that's the celebration.

"I think you can relate the celebration to him having a buzzer-beater or winning the game to us, as in football we don’t score as many points as they do in basketball. So I think there's a resemblance and he's a very good offensive player, I'm an offensive player so, I think so too.”

Bayern Munich's celebrations continued as Leroy Sane's impressive run caused havoc in Arsenal's defense. Sane managed to bypass Gabriel Magalhaes but was brought down by William Saliba, resulting in a penalty. Harry Kane stepped up and converted the spot-kick, giving Bayern a 2-1 lead in the 32nd minute.

Although Gnabry only made 18 appearances for Arsenal's first team, his connection with the club runs deep. In a 2019 interview with Pro Direct, he expressed his loyalty, declaring himself "Always a Gunner." Reflecting on his departure to Werder Bremen in 2016, Gnabry admitted it was a difficult decision but one that worked out well for him as he wanted playing time. However, he still holds Arsenal in high regard, describing them as a top club. In a 2020 interview with CBS Sports, Gnabry even named Arsenal as his favorite if he were to return to the Premier League one day.