DES WE CAN DO JOB AT WEMBLEY
AYER OF THE YEAR’ HAS MADE ARSENAL A FORCE
023 is Declan Rice. n of City will probof the Footballer of wards but, to me, go to Rice. een immense, he’s at least an extra 10 senal this season. tly has Rice brought
s’ his presence. He s to be in the right right time — that pen by accident. the game brilliantthat priceless habit nto the position to before it blows up.
He pulls others around him too, he’s both a talker and an organiser on the pitch.
Rice is a good user of the ball — both short and long — and he starts moves as well as getting you out of trouble by breaking up opposition attacks.
Tempo
One of the major factors in deciding football matches is tempo. When Arsenal need to slow a game down, it’s Rice that invariably does it.
When they need to speed it up, it’s again Rice who sets the tempo.
There are moments when you have to take the heat out of a game, others when you have to raise the temperature.
So many players can’t get a handle on how to do that, even at the biggest clubs. Rice is a master of it — and Arsenal have benefited greatly because of that.
Roy Keane and Graeme Souness have both been critical of Rice at different times, and I can’t figure out where they are coming from.
To me, he is the real deal. I don’t think there is a better player in his position in the (below) world. He will be remembered as a Premier League great.
The other big move Mikel Arteta made last summer was the signing of David Raya.
Solidity
I was against this buy because, to me, it made no sense. Arteta already had Aaron Ramsdale, who’d just been named in the PFA’s Team of the Year.
But Raya has given Arsenal that bit more solidity at the back.
Look at the amount of clean sheets he’s had.
OVER THE TOP: Roy Keane and Graeme Souness have been critics of Declan Rice and (above) the Arsenal Invincibles team with the Premier League trophy
You can’t argue with that.
Given their age profile, Arsenal are only going to get better, in my view, and their time will come.
This season will likely end trophyless but they will get there.
The summer will surely see the arrival of a 20 goal a year striker.
Arsenal are building up momentum that will bring the big prizes in the years to come.
GLOBETROTTING Des Buckingham can’t wait to lead hometown club Oxford out at Wembley.
The 39-year-old boss played for the club as a youngster and cut his teeth in coaching in their youth section before heading off to New Zealand, Australia and India to launch his managerial career.
Buckingham returned in November after
Liam Manning left for Championship Bristol City — and now Oxford are one game away from the second tier themselves, with Bolton awaiting in tomorrow week’s League One play-off final.
After the 1-1 draw at Peterborough which sent them through, Buckingham said: “It will be without doubt the proudest moment of my life to lead my hometown club out at Wembley in my first season here.
Moments
“We’ve had some tough moments along the way, but people have stuck together so strongly and this is fantastic for everyone associated with the football club.
“I can’t wait now to try to go one step further and reach the Championship. What a wonderful experience it’ll be. “We know we will sell out or allocation, no doubt. If we can replicate the atmosphere we had with 12,000 people at the Kassam with 35-40,000 at Wembley, it will be unbelievable.
“We knew coming here would be tough as Peterborough are an excellent team with some wonderful players. They were the highest goalscorers in the league for a reason.”