Soccer Football - Champions League - Arsenal v GNK Dinamo Zagreb - Emirates Stadium, London, Britain - January 22, 2025 Arsenal's Declan Rice celebrates scoring their first goal REUTERS/Toby Melville
LONDON (Reuters) - Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice is back to his best level with more attacking bite to his game, manager Mikel Arteta said of the club's record signing, who scored the opener in his side's 3-0 win over Dinamo Zagreb on Wednesday.
Rice netted his first Champions League goal inside two minutes to pave the way for a routine victory against the Croatian side that made Arsenal's place in the last 16 of the competition a virtual certainty.
"His intent, his purpose, especially attacking the positions he is taking and how he's driving with the ball," Arteta said of the England international. "There is another bite to his game and today he could have scored two goals.
"In the last few weeks he had some big, big open chances to score to affect the game, so overall, I'm very happy because we need to affect the game from those positions and he's certainly capable of doing that."
Rice rarely disappoints for Arsenal although he had looked jaded in the first half of the season and was left out of the starting lineup for three Premier League games.
A fully firing Rice will be crucial to Arsenal's pursuit of Liverpool in the Premier League title race and for them to progress deep in the Champions League.
"He's played so much football in the last two years, and as well, on top of that, we have moved him from one position to another. So, all the factors, but the good thing with Declan is he's so consistent, so reliable," Arteta said.
"He's always there, and when he creates those sparks, those moments, in the opposition's box, it's a great thing to have."
Arteta said that while Rice is a key cog in his team's ambitions, his levels need to be consistently high.
"Everybody has to be on their toes. He's not different to that and you can see that when he's fresher and he's in the condition that he is, he's a big player for us," Arteta said.
(Reporting by Martyn Herman; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
