Declan Rice acknowledged that Arsenal’s Champions League exit has left the team “distraught,” but he also vowed a “big reaction.”
Following their quarterfinal loss to Bayern Munich, Arsenal was eliminated from Europe, and a second loss in four days had put their entire season in jeopardy. Midfielder Rice for the Gunners said they were really sorry about how they lost to Bayern, especially after missing out on a chance to take the lead in the first leg.
Rice said: “Yeah, we’re gutted. We are distraught really. It’s just difficult to put into words because obviously over the course of the two legs, we had a great chance to go 2-0 up in the first game.
“We then had an uphill task because we went behind 2-1, we managed to bring it back to 2-2. We come here after Sunday, you know, feeling refreshed, feeling ready. You see a reaction in the first half especially.
“We played with confidence, just lacking that cutting edge. But again, it comes down to the boxes and, you know, we concede a goal which is unlike us. And to now go out with a header like that in a game that didn’t really have much in it, it’s the most disappointing thing to be honest with you.
“It’s gutting. you know I’m hurting. I come into this game, you know, full of hunger, desire, passion. I wanted to just get over the line for this club and so did all the players as well. You could see it, you know, you could see it in everyone. Everyone was so hungry together. But what I take from it is that it’s a learning experience.”
After losing to Aston Villa last weekend, which caused them to drop out of first place in the title battle, Rice feels Arsenal needs to bounce back at Wolves on Saturday in order to continue their season. Rice, though, is adamant that they will “stand up and be counted.” He continued, saying:
“You know, we’re a young group. There’s a lot of demand and pressure on us now to deliver and rightly so because, you know, we’re good at what we do. You know, this is Arsenal Football Club, one of the biggest clubs in the world, and we need to stand tall and be counted for. And, that now goes back to Saturday. We’ve got Wolves away, and that’s where our big reaction is going to happen.”
