Declan Rice has declared himself a “big-game player” as Arsenal prepare to face Paris Saint-Germain in the UEFA Champions League final on Saturday night.
The 27-year-old midfielder has the chance to make history at the Puskas Arena in Budapest, Hungary, winning Europe’s elite competition for the first time in Arsenal’s history.
Rice featured in all but two of Arsenal’s Champions League fixtures this season, missing only a couple of league phase ties before guiding the Gunners through the knockout rounds.
On the road to the final, Rice claimed three player of the match awards, competing for recognition alongside the likes of Kylian Mbappe and Julian Alvarez throughout the tournament.
Only four players earned more player of the match awards than Rice this season, with Kvicha Kvaratskhelia, Harry Kane, Victor Osimhen, and Francisco Trincao each recognised on four occasions.
Speaking to UEFA ahead of the final, Rice backed himself to rise to the occasion and said: “I would like to say I’m a big-game player.”
Rice expanded on that confidence, saying: “When you play in the biggest competitions, you need your players to step up at every single point, and not only just me.”
“I think our team have done that over the last few years in big games – we’ve stepped up, especially in the Champions League,” the England international added.
Rice spoke about managing his preparation heading into the showpiece, saying: “In football, you can’t determine before the game whether you’re going to play well or not. It’s the unknown.”
He continued: “But what you can control is how you start the game off, how [much] confidence you can build within yourself. And whether that’s with your first touch, a tackle, a header, always do the first thing right, and you build from there.”
PSG knocked Arsenal out of the Champions League at the semi-final stage last season, giving the upcoming final added weight and significance for Rice and his teammates.
Reflecting on that defeat, Rice said: “It could have gone either way, so speaking about it now, may the best team win. What did we learn from last season’s semi-final defeat? That you’ve got to take your chances, because we had plenty of them.”
Rice insisted that painful experience has helped shape the squad ahead of Saturday’s match against Luis Enrique’s side, saying: “It wasn’t meant to be, but it’s [those] moments that set you up for the moments that are coming. We’ll be ready.”
The Arsenal midfielder emphasised the level of performance required, adding: “You need to be on your A game to beat PSG. You need that fuel in your belly from the first whistle, that you’re going to win this final.”
Rice concluded: “What a chance, what an opportunity. It’ll be the last kick of club football for the season, so to go out on a high and give it absolutely everything, one last empty of the tank and give it everything you’ve got to win such a beautiful trophy with this club.”
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