‘Not in rhythm’…TNT pundit says 24-year-old Arsenal player was poor v Crystal Palace

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Arsenal cruised to a 5-0 win over Crystal Palace at The Emirates today but not every aspect of the performance was perfect.

Despite going on to dominate the game and put some gloss on the score-line late on through a Gabi Martinelli double, Arsenal still looked a touch away from their very best.

Indeed, the opening goals both came from set-pieces rather than Arsenal cutting Palace open.

A number of Arsenal’s top players, like Bukayo Saka, were not quite fully at it.

And speaking during the game, TNT Sport pundit Lucy Ward pointed out that Declan Rice was also one of the Gunners players who just didn’t look at it today.

“Talk about players not being in rhythm and I think he’s one of them. Not in rhythm, not quite been at his best Declan Rice today. Arteta just taking him off there to give him a bit of a rest,” Ward said.

Rice was replaced by Jorginho in the second half and appeared to hint at a small injury issue which, in fairness, may have dictated his performance level.

Rice has to stay fit for Arsenal to succeed

The comments here might suggest Rice was really poor but he wasn’t. He’s just set such a high bar with his performances this season that any dip is noticeable.

For Arsenal, keeping Declan Rice fully fit and involved in games is going to be crucial for them in terms of winning things.

He’s been so good since he signed that when he has a slight off day, the entire team seems to have a bit of an off day as well.

Rice will hopefully be back and fine for the next game after holding his hamstring going off.

If he is injured, then Arsenal have a big problem and one that can’t even be fixed in this month’s window.