Rice: “We’ve kicked ourselves in the foot three times this season”

Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice says his side cannot keep getting lucky amid inconsistencies, but backed the team to regroup and get better after a disappointing showing this evening.

The Bournemouth game saw Arsenal succumb to a disappointing 0-2 defeat. They struggled to create clear-cut chances and were ultimately undone by two goals from the Cherries, thanks to second-half goals from Ryan Christie and Justin Kluivet. The loss highlighted Arsenal’s vulnerabilities and their need for improvement in various aspects of their game, particularly in terms of disciplinary records as well as taking their chances.

Arsenal would have hoped for a more ideal start to the season, however, frustrating results against Brighton, Manchester City, and Bournemouth highlighted their vulnerabilities and have raised questions about their ability to challenge for the Premier League title.

Speaking to Sky Sports after the defeat, Declan Rice admitted to the side’s inconsistencies. “They were showing now the chance that we had on the TV before they [Bournemouth] went up the other end and scored. I think the matter of the fact is we kicked ourselves in the foot three times now this season in eight games, and we’ve got away with it twice, at home to Brighton and away to [Manchester] City, but not all the time luck can go your way and in the end tonight Bournemouth kept probing and then they won 2-0.”

William Saliba got Arsenal’s third red card of the Premier League season with less than 1o games played so far. This disciplinary record is a cause for concern for Mikel Arteta as he looks for ways to put an end to his players losing their heads in the heat of the action.

Declan Rice’s criticism stems from Arsenal’s tendency to self-inflict damage through costly mistakes. In the Brighton game, the Gunners were reduced to ten men after the former West Ham man was red-carded for kicking the ball away and ultimately dropping points.

In the Man City game, another needless and avoidable red card by Leandro Trossard caused them a vital win. And against Bournemouth, they were once again undone by defensive errors. Rice has expressed his frustration, emphasizing the importance of reducing these self-inflicted wounds.

Despite his criticism, Rice has also expressed his pride in the Arsenal squad. He acknowledges the team’s potential and their ability to achieve great things. He maintains “Look I’m proud of us as a group of players because to keep fighting and believing in what we do, believe that we can win even with ten men. I thought we played well even with ten men, but the naivety of it is that we’ve got to stop making mistakes because we want 11 players for 90 minutes to win football matches”

“To be honest with you, I thought with ten men we showed a lot of character and personality to stay in the game. Like I said the big chance was the one we had [Martinelli’s chance] which the keeper made a great save and they got to the other end and I think they got a corner from that and a minute later they scored.”

Rice’s post-match remarks provide valuable insight into Arsenal’s current situation. The team faces a number of challenges, including inconsistencies, defensive discipline, and a tendency to make costly mistakes.

“I think there’s no regrets tonight other than the fact that we can’t keep making silly mistakes especially if you want to compete and be at the top end of the season. You know you need your best players on the pitch at all times, and it then gives the other players a mountain to climb as well when you’re down to ten men but look, the belief of this group of players is so, so high. We’ve just spoken tthere as a group.

“Such a big month coming up, we’ll stick together, this is football, this is what happens. It’s a rollercoaster game, there’s up and down journey and it’s never going to be perfect, but the most important thing is we stick together and head in the right direction”

Rice’s call for improvement is a necessary wake-up call for the Gunners

Read more:

Liverpool must be ‘prepared to fight’ against Chelsea – Virgil van Dijk

Manchester City could be without seven players for Wolves game

Ayew’s late winner stuns the Saints, Man United beat Brentford in Premier league matchweek 8