Stuart Pearce says he’d love to see one Arsenal player ‘grab the game’ more in the future

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Declan Rice had his first big moment in an Arsenal shirt yesterday as the Gunners beat Manchester United in injury time.

Rice has made a solid start to life as an Arsenal player but he got his first huge moment yesterday by scoring in injury time to win the game.

However, while Rice might have won the game and had a solid game, his former coach at West Ham, Stuart Pearce, still believes the midfielder can do more.

Stuart Pearce says he wants even more from Declan Rice at Arsenal

As we know, Pearce knows Rice more than a lot in the game and very much knows his strengths and weaknesses.

However, while he was happy for Rice’s goal and performance v United yesterday, the former England left-back would still like more from the £100m man. Speaking on TalkSPORT, Pearce commented:

“I always think there’s more to come from Dec. I’d like to see him grab the game by the scruff of the neck at times,” Pearce said.

“Whenever I used to take to the pitch I used to think I want to be the best player on the pitch. I want to get man of the match. I wanted to be the best player at the end of the game. Dec’s got to keep striving for that sort of thing. If he wants to go and maximise the price tag or whatever, then he’s going to have to go and win games on his own at times.”

Rice will now go away with England before returning to Arsenal to kick on. Crucially, Champions League football will then be underway, and Rice will hope to shine in Europe once more.

More to come

Some players take an age to settle into a new club. But with Declan Rice, he just seems to have slotted in seamlessly really.

Rice looks every bit the quality midfielder at times that Arsenal have been crying out for. Yes, Pearce is right in that he could probably do a bit more.

But with more time, more training and getting used to his new teammates, Rice will shine for the Gunners. And in the end, the £100m fee might end up not even looking that expensive.