Declan Rice shared his perspective on “the best team in the league” following Arsenal’s pivotal victory over Premier League leaders Liverpool.
Mikel Arteta’s squad narrowed the gap at the top to just two points after securing a 3-1 win, courtesy of goals from Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli, and Leandro Trossard. While Liverpool has displayed strong form throughout the season, boasting 15 wins from 23 matches, individual errors proved decisive on Sunday.
Reflecting on the outcome after the final whistle, summer signing Declan Rice offered his analysis, paying a significant compliment to their recent adversaries.
“They have been the best team in the league if you look on paper and statistically, this is only their second loss today,” Rice told Bein Sports. “We knew how big today was going into the game, the momentum needed from everyone, staff, players, and fans, and it transmitted onto the field today.
“For 90 minutes, it was evident that it was a team willing to do anything to win a football match. Ultimately, we emerged victorious, and it’s a very satisfying feeling all around.”
Rice, a standout performer for Arsenal this season, further remarked: “We’ve got some great characters in the team who were pushing on, driving on at halftime that it wasn’t a moment to let our heads drop.
“We couldn’t let one moment of a lack of concentration affect what we’d done for that 45. “We knew in the second half it was going to be a tough game but, in the end, we gave it everything, and we got the three points which was massive for us.”
In his post-match interview, Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp conceded that Arsenal deserved the win.
“In general, it was not our day. We can admit that. Arsenal deserves the three points. Even when the circumstances were a bit strange,” he said. “We didn’t play enough from the start. We struggled a little bit. We weren’t calm enough. We had the possession, we just didn’t have the finishes.”
As of now, Liverpool holds a two-point lead over Arsenal in the title race, with third-placed Manchester City trailing by five points with two games in hand.
