London, April 18 (IANS) Arsenal head coach Mikel Arteta sang praises of Declan Rice for his performance across the two legs in the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals against Real Madrid.
After his Player of the Match performance in the first leg, which saw him become the first player to score two goals from direct free-kicks in a single UCL knockout match, Rice ran the show at Santiago Bernabeu in the second leg, commanding the midfield with another huge performance that saw Arsenal come away from the Spanish capital with a 2-1 victory to win the tie 5-1 on aggregate, booking their semi-finals clash against PSG.
Rice was once again presented with the Player of the Match trophy, having played 89 minutes, covered just shy of 12km and had a passing accuracy of 97 per cent.
Arsenal signed Rice in the 2023-24 season on a 105 million pound deal from West Ham United and Arteta backed the club’s decision to spend on the record signing.
“He’s learning more and more. His performances like he had in the second leg against Real Madrid put him in a different dimension. That’s why we brought him here. That’s why we are demanding as well. It’s about maintaining that level of consistency and belief. Undoubtedly his role will be bigger and bigger,” said Arteta in the pre-game press conference.
Although Arsenal have now sealed a date with PSG in the semi-final of the UCL, the Gunners will need to once again focus on the Premier League after having drawn in their last two outings against Everton and Brentford. Newcastle have now crept to within four points of the Gunners, who sit in second place, and will now have to secure their spot in next year’s UCL, by sealing a spot in the top five teams of the league.
“The priority now is to win games in the Premier League. We were in a much better position but the last two draws have significantly changed that. Credit to Newcastle for the form they are in and the way they have been playing. We need to step up and start to win [Premier League] games,” Arteta added.
Arsenal will face Ipswich Town on Sunday and a loss for the Gunners could see Liverpool clinch the league title later that day if they manage to secure the three points against Leicester City.
“We have to make sure we win the game (against Ipswich) and make sure that (Liverpool winning the title this weekend) doesn’t happen,” Arteta said.
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