Arsenal’s Rice on taking set pieces, scoring goals and form

LONDON — The speed of Declan Rice's development at Arsenal has surprised many people. But not the man himself.

The 25-year-old midfielder signed from West Ham United in the summer for an initial fee of £100 million, with a £5 million bonus, and has been an integral part of the Gunners' hopes of winning the title Premier League this season. two points behind Liverpool at the top of the table.

“I'll be honest, some people might stand here and say, 'Yeah, I surprised myself,' but that's not the case,” Rice told ESPN. “I was playing so well at West Ham, I feel like my level at West Ham has given me so much confidence and belief in myself to have that belief that I can be a top player in the Premier League.

“But the main thing was to be myself. Don't change anything. Just because I signed for £105 million, don't do anything different, just be myself. Things can work themselves out and up “Now things have gone very well. I have signed for six years and there is still a long way to go in my career at Arsenal.”

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Rice is speaking after being named Premier League Player of the Year at the London Football Awards, in another indication of the significant impact he has had since leaving the Hammers as part of this record deal with the club.

But it was a difficult decision for him. Rice joined West Ham aged 14 after being released by Chelsea. She then became club captain and made 245 appearances, the last of which ended with her lifting her first trophy in 43 years by beating Fiorentina 2–1 in the UEFA Europa final. Conference League.

Rice had developed into one of England's best midfielders and despite a real affinity with the club where he grew from boy to man, the time was right to test himself at the top of the Premier League. Playing against his old team was always going to be tricky and Arsenal made it surprisingly tougher, losing 3-1 in the Carabao Cup in November – when Rice was a 57th-minute substitute – then succumbing at home in the Premier League with a defeat 2-0 in which he conceded a penalty in the final minutes.

That context made last month's championship trip to the London Stadium – his first start as an opponent in the venue he called home – all the more intriguing. But the collective response was categorical. After receiving a mixed reception from an early corner (yes, it's from set pieces now, more on that later), the Gunners went on to win 6-0, with Rice refusing to celebrate a brilliant sixth goal that he scored in the 25th minute. meters. And he has yet to speak about the emotions of that day.

“It was so hard,” he said. “We lost in the cup against them. We lost in the league at the Emirates; I didn't play well and gave away a penalty. The West Ham fans joked with me and I can accept that 100%. ;I played for West Ham for 10 years and I know how they work. When I went to turn the corner there were a few boos, but there was also some applause.

“I know my love for them has never changed; their love for me has never changed. It's one of those things where you move on. Obviously I scored a great goal, it was really strange. Even talking about it now, it's weird. A lot of guys asked me afterwards, 'How does that feel?' It was a bittersweet feeling, really strange.

“I always said I would never celebrate against West Ham and I don't think I ever will. They made me who I am. I spent 10 years there, I owe them a lot .I would never celebrate, I think it would be really disrespectful. [it was] a very good day to win and score, but a bittersweet feeling.”

Rice has brought composure and class to Arsenal's midfield, but new aspects of his game are constantly emerging. He had ostensibly been branded a defensive midfielder – critics claimed earlier in his career that his passing range was too conservative – but under the tutelage of Mikel Arteta, Rice switched between playing as a deep-lying number 6 or as a as a more offensive player. No. 8, a change that helped in part lead to unexpected contributions to goals.

The England international has already equaled his best return in a Premier League season, scoring four times, including some crucial moments such as a stoppage-time goal against Manchester United and a last-second winner at Luton.

“To score that and look back at the goal, you can't help but smile,” he says of his goal against United in early September. “Probably my best moment so far. My role has completely changed from what I was doing at West Ham and it's taken me time to adapt, improve, ask questions, and I'm trying really buy into it. I was bought for a lot of money, I want to ask questions and improve, and I want to win things with this club.”

In perhaps the most unexpected twist yet, Rice is now given responsibility for corners and set pieces – a trait first seen with a goal from his corner in Arsenal's first game after a training break in hot weather in Dubai: a 5-0 victory over Palais de Cristal.

“We had conversations about it with Nico [Nicolas Jover]coach on set pieces since the start of the season,” he said. “Obviously because of my height [6-foot-1], he wanted me in the box. I just feel like he wanted a change. If I hadn't had the help [against Palace]I don’t think anyone would have talked about it.

“Obviously, I've had some good deliveries near the middle and back post in the games. I'm excited about getting some assists now. That's an important thing for me. Whereas before, goals and assists weren't really my thing. But now I like getting assists, scoring goals and I feel like it gives me that extra energy on the pitch. I strive, I have goals by the end of the season, what I want to achieve.

Arsenal's ultimate goal is to do better than last season and win the championship. They held an eight-point advantage at the start of April to win three of the last nine league matches as Manchester City overhauled them.

Rice was then a mere spectator at West Ham, aware of the perception that the Gunners ran out of steam or faded when the pressure reached peak intensity.

“I think Arsenal were the best team in the league last season, but they made a mistake at the end,” he says. “What they are saying now is that they can’t believe they lost the championship by eight points.

“This year, I feel like everyone in the team, including the manager and the staff, wants to learn from these mistakes. We are stronger, we believe in it. If we lose 1-0, we will have that confidence and mental strength. us that we can move forward and win games. The league is so strong this year that anything can happen. There are 12 games left to play but the main thing is that we are there. At Christmas we We had a little wobble, we lost two bounce games, which wasn't good, but we won some big games at home recently, which was very important.

At the end of the season we'll see who wins it, but playing there has been special, playing against the best teams every week and the pressure, it's so good and I know myself and everyone the guys are really enjoying it .So we'll go ahead and see what happens.

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Why Declan Rice is 'worth every penny' of his Arsenal transfer fee

Shaka Hislop praises Declan Rice after his late winner for Arsenal against Luton Town.

So, are there even higher levels that rice can reach?

“I have this conversation with the manager all the time,” he adds. “A few weeks ago he said, 'You don't realize the potential you can reach.' Maybe sometimes it's not, maybe sometimes I downplay things and I don't feel as confident as it seems. The next thing is winning trophies.”

Once Arsenal's season is over, Rice will travel to Germany where England are among the favorites to win Euro 2024. Gareth Southgate hopes to benefit from Rice's progress at Arsenal, Jude Bellingham's elevation to Real Madrid and Harry Kane's constant scoring at Bayern Munich. The high-level individual talent at the manager's disposal will only intensify talk about whether, finally, England can end a 58-year wait for silverware.

“I feel like that’s the conversation every time a tournament comes around,” Rice says. “A lot of players are obviously playing very well. There are so many players in the Premier League: Jarrod Bowen at West Ham, Ross Barkley at Luton, Cole Palmer [Chelsea]Curtis Jones [Liverpool]so many players are playing well.

“[It’s a] a big one in Germany; never been made on foreign soil. Gareth and [assistant coach] Steve [Holland] reminded us. We are confident. We have two big games in March [against Brazil and Belgium] it will be a very good test. If we learn the lessons from the previous World Cup and the Euro, anything can happen. That’s what happens that day, you know? If you can perform and handle the pressure. I really believe we can do it.”