Former Liverpool ace Danny Murphy believes Declan Rice could give Arsenal the edge in the Premier League title race with the England international ‘fantastic’ in Sunday’s 3-1 win over Jurgen Klopp’s side.
Gone are the days of a ‘soft-centred’ Arsenal. A side who would fall apart like a house of cards in a breeze at the first sign of trouble.
With Declan Rice patrolling things in the centre of the park, with Gabriel Martinelli and Bukayo Saka offering never-ending enthusiasm on the wings, and Gabriel Magalhaes and William Saliba colossal at the back, Mikel Arteta has constructed a genuine Premier League-challenging spine at the Emirates Stadium, with their £105 million signing the vertebrae connecting the bottom to the top.
Rice was typically commanding and collected as Arsenal made a major statement in the title race on Sunday, swatting aside table-toppers Liverpool with unforseen ease.
Declan Rice shines as Arsenal beat Liverpool
“Declan Rice was fantastic. (Arsenal) mean business. I think they will be there or thereabouts, you can see the difference in their mindset. They have a better chance (of winning the league) than they did last season,” Murphy, who’s Liverpool side defeated The Gunners in the 2001 FA Cup final, tells talkSPORT (7 February, 12pm).
“I think Liverpool’s firepower is better than Arsenal’s, and I still agree with that. Where Arsenal may have an edge is in terms of their defensive capability. They shut out Man City (in October‘s 1-0 win). Liverpool didn’t really look like scoring.
“Arsenal, defensively. are really good at the moment. I think Liverpool and Arsenal will push City really close.”
‘A different dimension’
Murphy feels that Rice has taken Arsenal to another level too, combining the technical quality of Granit Xhaka with the ball-winning prowess of Thomas Partey.
“What they’ve got now in Declan Rice is he gives them a different dimension (with) his physicality,” the one-time Tottenham midfielder adds, with the eventual return of Jurrien Timber and the revival of Jorginho giving Arteta further depth.
“They’ve got Timber to come back. He will give them competition. Jorginho’s experience could be key. He looked tremendous (against Liverpool). It was a brilliant performance
“(But Rice) is the reason why they are better. They don’t need to win games by lots of goals.”
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