"He will embrace the challenge" - Pundit believes 24-year-old star will help Arsenal in their bid to win the PL this season

Former Arsenal striker John Hartson believes Declan Rice will help the Gunners win the Premier League this season. The retired Welsh footballer insists that the England international will be the X factor as Mikel Arteta's side push for the title this term.

Hartson lavished praise on the former West Ham United skipper and told Premier League productions (as quoted by HITC):

“Nothing will phase him. He looks calm. He looks ready for the challenge and is excited to be at Arsenal by having the responsibility of being at the club. They came so close last season. They were at the top of the league for months and months and months. Just fell away at the end."

"He will be the one to be that player ‘right, we aren’t doing that this year’. I think he will embrace the challenge."

Arsenal secured Rice's services from West Ham this summer for a club-record fee of £100 million. The North London outfit were in the market for a midfielder after the departures of Granit Xhaka and Ainsley Maitland-Niles.

Rice played an instrumental role in the Hammers' 2022/23 campaign, a season in which they displayed some impressive form. The England international registered 50 appearances across all competitions, scoring five goals and providing four assists.

He led his former club to a UEFA Conference League victory as their captain and ended their 42-year wait for a trophy (their last major title being the FA Cup win in 1980).

Rice will certainly be beneficial for Arteta's side as they look to challenge Manchester City once again this season.

"Look something special in the middle of the park" - Pundit says two Arsenal stars 'worked wonderfully well'

ESPN Pundit Shaka Hislop has reserved praise for Arsenal midfielders Rice and Martin Odegaard for their performance against Nottingham Forest on Saturday (12 August).

Following the encounter, Hislop lauded the Arsenal midfield duo and said (as quoted by The Boot Room):

"It looked really easy in the first 45 (minutes), they were in total control of the game. The only question marks for me were Arteta using Partey as a kind of hybrid right-back come midfielder, which I didn’t really fully understand."

Hislop added:

“But it worked wonderfully well in the first 45. I would say Odegaard and Rice look something special in the middle of the park.”

The Gunners locked horns with Steve Cooper's side in their opening Premier League encounter of the 2023/24 campaign. Arteta's men secured a 2-1 victory over their English counterparts thanks to goals from Eddie Nketiah and Bukayo Saka.

After a dominant first half that saw two Arsenal players get on the scoresheet, the Gunners had a rather turbulent second half. The North London outfit looked unstable at the back as they conceded a goal in the 82nd minute, threatening a potential comeback from Forest.