Mikel Arteta has praised Declan Rice for his initiative after the midfielder ignored the instructions of Arsenal’s set-piece coach before scoring the first of his two free-kicks against Real Madrid.
Rice revealed that Nicolas Jover had been telling him to cross the ball rather than shoot in the 58th minute of the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final on Tuesday. Rice had never scored a free kick in 338 appearances but said Jover’s instructions “didn’t make sense” and opted to shoot instead after being encouraged by Bukayo Saka.
“They have to make the decision,” said Arteta. “We are here to help them, to paint the picture of what the options are, but I loved it. When we talk about taking the next step, it is a lot about that: taking the initiative, making things happen on the pitch and believing you can actually win the game by yourself sometimes. I was really impressed with the way he did it.”
The manager added: “It’s related to confidence as well and feeling and owning that moment, which is really important. So there’s no coincidence that all the top teams, you look at their games in the Champions League, the amount of individual moments that won the football matches … that’s a necessity.”
after newsletter promotion
Arsenal will take a 3-0 lead to the Bernabéu on Wednesday. Arteta is expected to rest several players against Brentford on Saturday, although Rice and Saka have been passed fit after being substituted against Madrid.
Mikel Arteta is hoping that Kai Havertz could return before the end of the season as the forward steps up his recovery from a hamstring injury. The Germany international had surgery after sustaining the injury in February during Arsenal’s training camp in Dubai and posted an update on X on Thursday with the message: “Step by step.” It also featured a video of his rehabilitation. Bukayo Saka has just returned from a similar injury that caused him to miss three months and the Champions League final on 31 May is a potential target for Havertz should Arsenal make it to Munich.
“Let’s see,” Arteta said when asked whether Havertz could be back before the end of the season. “The mindset of those two is very, very similar. Great injury history, great work ethic, desperate to get back playing as quick as possible. And great medical staff as well to look after them. So hopefully we can have him, but let’s wait, I think. Once you get to the last stage of that rehab is when you can understand better how close or far you are to make that next step.”
Source: theguardian.com
