Arsenal' press conference in Paris
Declan Rice has set the story straight (Picture: Getty Images)
It was widely reported that Declan Rice told his Arsenal teammates ahead of their first leg with PSG: ‘If we don’t have the ball, we die.’ But he is not so sure he did say that.
The Gunners were beaten 1-0 at home by the impressive French outfit last week and go to Paris with a huge task on their hands to reach the final.
Before the game in north London, Rice was speaking in a huddle with his teammates and it appeared that he said to them: ‘If we don’t have the ball, we die.’
Viewers employed their lip-reading skills to come to that conclusion, but he says that they were wrong to do so.
Speaking ahead of the second leg, Rice told a press conference: ‘Can I just put that to bed? I don’t think I said that.
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‘I don’t know how that come about, I read that after the game and was like “I’m not sure I said that.” Obviously a big thing got made of it.
‘I think I was just talking in general, like we obviously know PSG are a really good team with the ball and sometimes you are going to suffer but it’s about how you defend, how you stay compact and how you can hurt them when you regain the ball.
‘I think that story got spun a little bit, but that’s what I was saying.’
Arsenal obviously go into the second leg in a poor position but not a disastrous one, with Rice sounding positive that Mikel Arteta’s men can pull off a huge result and make it into the Champions League final.
Ousmane Dembele’s fourth minute goal was the difference at the Emirates, but Rice feels the rest of the game was even.
‘I think the first 15 minutes, the early goal probably shocked us a little bit and it took us probably 15-20 minutes to get a foothold in the game,’ he said.
Arsenal FC v Paris Saint-Germain - UEFA Champions League 2024/25 Semi Final First Leg
Arsenal suffered a very early setback against PSG (Picture: Getty Images)
‘Once we started keeping the ball a little bit and create some chances – Obviously Donnarumma made some amazing saves – we had full belief. Then second half, there was a little blip where they hit the crossbar and put one wide.
‘We had some massive chances as well. I think tomorrow night is going to be a really good game. We’re really positive and have full belief we can come here and do something special.’
He added: ‘Once we worked out how we could beat them, obviously we missed a few chances, but in terms of how we were driving with the ball, giving our wingers one-vs-one opportunities, chances started to open up,” Rice said.
‘I think tomorrow night we need to do the same. We need to have big balls and we need to go out there on the biggest stage and show that we’re ready to play at this level.’
Arsenal Press Conference - UEFA Champions League 2024/25 Semi Final Second Leg
Mikel Arteta is bidding to pull off an upset in Paris (Picture: Getty Images)
Arteta provided an injury update ahead of the second leg, with Jurrien Timber’s availability still up in the air.
‘I will assess him today to see if he can play … We will decide tomorrow,’ Arteta said of the defender.
There was better news on Riccardo Calfiori, though, with the Spaniard saying: ‘He’s travelled, he’s fit, and he’s available to play if we need him.’
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