Arsenal's England midfielder, Declan Rice, made a major contribution to his team's victory by providing five assists in the team's victory over Liverpool in Round 9 of this season's Premier League. Havertz took the lead in the 16th minute, giving Arsenal a 1-0 victory over Liverpool. Rice said that discussing the specific timing and role of overlap with manager Mikel Arteta before the game contributed to his good form.
In a pre-match conversation, Rice told Havertz to ``run aggressively into the penalty area,'' and praised Havertz for doing just that when he actually scored a goal. ``We had a really candid exchange,'' Rice said, adding that the conversation with the coach increased his confidence in his game. He renewed his belief that ``I can do more for the club by wearing this uniform,'' and said that the manager had the same idea.
Rice has started in nine games to date and has five assists. He has seven and nine assists in the past two seasons, and is on track to set a new career high this time around. In his post-game comments, Rice said, ``I've been in great shape this season, and I want to keep it up,'' expressing his expectations for his future play.
The match against Liverpool was an important match as Arsenal won for the first time in 14 years at Anfield, which is known as the Devil's Gate. Rice's assists led the team's offense and are attracting attention as an example of how his preliminary discussions with the coach bore fruit. Going forward, Arsenal plans to maintain this momentum and fight for a place in the Premier League.