Declan Rice says Arsenal are ‘looking forward’ to Sunday’s huge Carabao Cup final clash with Manchester City and consider they will beat anyone straight away.
Mikel Arteta’s side took care of business within the Champions League on Tuesday evening, beating Bayer Leverkusen 2-0 to secure their place within the quarter-finals.
Eberechi Eze’s superb strike broke the deadlock before Rice’s second-half strike secured a 3-1 aggregate win for the Gunners against their German opposition.
The victory only helps to construct momentum ahead of the weekend, where Arsenal will look to win their first major trophy because the FA Cup in 2020.
Pep Guardiola’s City side stand in the way in which, and Rice believes that the Sunday’s result could prove pivotal when it comes the Premier League run-in over the approaching weeks and months.
‘Definitely, it might be the beginning of something,’ he told CBS. ‘It’s the primary trophy that’s up for grabs.
‘In case you win that, the momentum after that that takes you forward is very large.
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‘But Sunday goes to be an incredible game against them, and it comes all the way down to how much you wish it. Arsenal are back in a final for possibly the primary time because the Carabao Cup final in 2019, I feel.
‘So, how do you wish it on Sunday? How much do you ought to win a trophy for this team and these fans?’
Wednesday’s victory means Arsenal at the moment are unbeaten in 14 games in all competitions, with Rice suggesting that run of form has the Gunners confident of beating anyone.
‘The lads are already talking about in there, we’re excited, we’re ready,’ he said on Sunday’s showdown.
‘And like I said on the minute every game of football we go into, we consider we will win so we’ll be ready and searching forward to it.’
Meanwhile, Arteta was keen to praise Rice’s individual performance in what was already his sixteenth start of the calendar yr.
‘He was immense,’ the Arsenal boss told reporters post-match.
‘Him and the entire team – I just mentioned the soul of the team, I feel the way that they go for each ball, the eagerness that they show and the response is remarkable.
‘Doing it every three days at that level is so difficult.’
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