Rice can be Arsenal’s new Vieira – but pressure now on Gunners

Rice can be Arsenal’s new Vieira – but pressure now on Gunners

Declan Rice’s club-record arrival at Arsenal in a £105m deal is another sign of the club’s intent.

With so little expectation, they emerged as the team most likely to end Manchester City’s domestic dominance.

The Gunners dropped only five points before the World Cup and, after a stutter in February when they picked up just one point from three matches, went on a run of seven wins in a row, culminating in the 4-1 victory against Leeds on 1 April.

It meant Mikel Arteta’s men were eight points clear with nine games left, albeit City had a game in hand.

It didn’t work out the way they hoped.

Surrendering two-goal leads against Liverpool and West Ham in successive outings set off a tailspin. They won only three more games and eventually finished second, five points adrift of Pep Guardiola’s side.

Still, shrugging off the disappointment was easy. Beyond question, Arsenal had vastly exceeded pre-season expectations.

As the 10th richest club in the world, according to Deloitte, they were not exactly the plucky underdogs some might have characterised them as. But Arsenal fans certainly had a lot to look forward to.

And it cannot be argued they have failed to push on.

In committing more than £100m to the signing of Rice from West Ham, £65m to sign Chelsea forward Kai Havertz and £34m spent on Dutch international defender Jurrien Timber from Ajax, Arteta has received significant backing.

Rice can be Arsenal’s Vieira figure

Arsenal’s signing of Rice is a real statement of intent.

Arteta identified the England man as someone who could provide the athleticism and vision he felt Arsenal lacked in the middle of the pitch.

Although primarily used as a defensive midfielder at West Ham, Arteta knows Rice is capable of making an impact in an attacking sense as well.

This would arguably give the Gunners the kind of inspiration in the centre of the pitch they have lacked since the departure of legendary club captain Patrick Vieira in 2005.

Evidently, Rice’s goal output needs to increase from the career-best seasonal haul of five he has managed in each of the past two campaigns but in a side that prefers to control possession rather than hit on the counter like West Ham, that is well within his capabilities.

In addition, Rice is a leader. Still only 24, the former Chelsea trainee has effectively been West Ham’s captain for the past two seasons. He fronted up when David Moyes’ side struggled last season and never showed any lack of respect for the Hammers, even when he must have known his time with them was drawing to a close.

His reaction around the Europa Conference League final victory over Fiorentina, when he became only the second man after Bobby Moore to lead the Hammers to European glory, earned praise from everyone connected with the club.

Rice may not get the captain’s armband this season, with Martin Odegaard already installed in the role, but he is certainly someone who can keep driving Arsenal forward in tough situations, as Vieira used to do.