Pundit says Arsenal wouldn’t have beaten Sevilla without 24-year-old

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Arsenal beat Sevilla 2-1 on Tuesday evening in the Champions League.

The Gunners beat the Europa League holders in their own backyard thanks to a truly inspired attacking performance by Gabriel Jesus.

The Brazilian scored a brilliant goal and grabbed an assist to boot and he was undoubtedly the Man of the Match.

Well, at least that’s how some saw it.

Indeed, speaking on the TalkSPORT Premier League All Access Podcast, Scott Minto has actually named Declan Rice as the player he thought won the game for Arsenal this week.

Rice the gamewinner

Minto spoke highly of the midfielder and his performance against Sevilla.

“I thought actually Declan Rice was superb, everyone talks about Jesus, but I thought Declan Rice was just, without him they wouldn’t have won the game, it was a wonderful performance,” Minto said.

Fantastic

Minto is spot on, Rice was absolutely vital in terms of winning this game for Arsenal.

We wouldn’t go as far as to say that he outshone Gabriel Jesus, but he came very close to doing so, and that’s saying a lot considering how well the Brazilian played.

It was a masterclass in midfield work from Rice. He, as always, covered every blade of grass, and his assuredness in the middle of the park brought a real calmness to the team in moments where it seemed like the tide was going to turn.

Make no mistake about it, Rice was signed for games like this at Arsenal, and we were incredibly impressed by what we saw from the England international this week.

Rice has taken to Champions League football like a duck to water, and Arsenal can be very happy with how their summer signing is getting on.