Declan Rice’s injury-related substitution during Arsenal’s 2-0 victory over Wolves left Arsenal fans worried. The midfielder appeared to be in considerable discomfort, limping off the field as he made way for Gabriel Jesus, which raised concerns about a possible injury to our stalwart midfielder.
But in his post-match press conference, Mikel Arteta promptly dispelled any injury concerns, clarifying that Rice’s substitution was entirely precautionary.
“He was cramping a bit,” Arteta said, highlighting the midfielder’s contributions throughout the match. “He has not had the longest pre-season ever. He was really trying and put in an unbelievable performance today,” Arteta added, acknowledging Rice’s impressive all round game, as usual.
Arteta made a wise decision when he substituted Rice, prioritising the Englishman’s fitness given that Arsenal was already 2-0 up and in control of the game when he did.
With a difficult season ahead in which Arsenal must redeem themselves after twice failing to win the league when they were so close, Arteta’s top players’ fitness will be critical to his team’s title hopes. This early evidence of Arteta’s meticulous player management will definitely provide reassurance to Arsenal fans as they prepare for a challenging season.
Rice had a tremendous performance, making some efficient short passes in the final third. He provided a fantastic link between the assault and midfield. We hope he will be ready to go when Arsenal faces Aston Villa next weekend, as we need to teach a lesson to Aston Villa, who, last season, beat our Gunners both at home and away, results that denied us league glory.
I really hope that Rice is ready for that crucial fixture…
Daniel O
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His cramping may have well speed up the signing of Mikal Merino, am told the deal hire the Spanish International is all but done.
Villa Park will be rocking, a early absence of the former West Ham from the middle of the park will only inspire the Unei Emery coach outfit
My thoughts exactly on your first paragraph. Rice picking up a niggling injury must have put pressure on Edu to wrap up the deal quickly. Surprised to see that it’s taken this long to finalise if the quoted release clause in question were to be considered.
it doesn’t bode well that Rice cramped up in the first game of the season those are usually problems you get at the end of a season deep into it and near the end of a game you’ll see it So it shows that Rice and Saka must feel like they’ve been playing non-stop since last season Hopefully Merino slots in like a glove and we get in a proper replacement for Saka as these two will need to be managed at some stage I like the look of that Adynga kid from Brighton he’s a good footballer Brighton look dangerous on the wings Not sure how much they’d charge us though if at all
We shouldn’t be worried if his replacement would do the job against the villans.