ARSENAL MIDFIELDER DECLAN Rice dismissed concerns about the Premier League leaders’ mentality but admitted the 2-2 draw at Wolves was “sickening.”
The Gunners’ title hopes took a blow when debutant Tom Edozie equalised in additional time for the league’s basement team to salvage a point at Molineux on Wednesday.
Mikel Arteta’s side had led 2-0 but Hugo Bueno’s curling strike pulled one back for Wolves, before Edozie’s last-gasp equaliser.
It means Arsenal hold a five-point advantage over second-placed Manchester City, having also played a game more, and Rice told Sky Sports: “For them (Wolves) to come back and draw 2-2 was sickening and very, very disappointing.
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“We just stopped doing the basics, in a game of football it swings both ways and we ended up getting into a game they wanted to play.
“We didn’t really get a foothold in the game after the (Wolves’ first) goal, which is disappointing because at 2-0 you think you’re going to walk away with it.”
However, he added: “From the moment I’ve come in, to the moment we’re at now I’ve seen a big difference after games and the mentality of the boys in terms of…if things aren’t right, things getting brought up, saying something and getting something off your chest that you feel can actually help the situation.
“I think the other night that was needed because at 2-0 we should have won the game, we know the position we are in.”
Arsenal have now drawn their last two Premier League games, which has allowed City to close the gap, and their next test is a north London derby at Tottenham on Sunday.
In addition to their league expectations, a busy fixture list also sees the Gunners through to next month’s Carabao Cup final and they have secured their spot in the Champions League knockout stages, while a trip to Mansfield awaits in the FA Cup fifth round.
The Gunners have finished as runners-up in the last three Premier League seasons but Rice stressed that there is belief within the group.
Asked about feeling the weight of pressure and expectation following their second-placed finishes, he said: “We’re on our own journey and we fully believe in each other.
“We want to do it because we’ve got such a good core group, such quality players now, that we can do it, and it shows then that we can flick a page in terms of people talking about that mentality.”
Arsenal last won the Premier League in 2004 and Rice stressed the need for readiness as his side challenge for that crown.
He added in The Sun: “We’re not going to be handed it, we need to go and win it, we need to deserve it and we need to be ready for anything that is thrown at us.”
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'At 2-0 you think you’re going to walk away with it' - Declan Rice on Arsenal's latest slip up
ARSENAL MIDFIELDER DECLAN Rice dismissed concerns about the Premier League leaders’ mentality but admitted the 2-2 draw at Wolves was “sickening.”
The Gunners’ title hopes took a blow when debutant Tom Edozie equalised in additional time for the league’s basement team to salvage a point at Molineux on Wednesday.
Mikel Arteta’s side had led 2-0 but Hugo Bueno’s curling strike pulled one back for Wolves, before Edozie’s last-gasp equaliser.
It means Arsenal hold a five-point advantage over second-placed Manchester City, having also played a game more, and Rice told Sky Sports: “For them (Wolves) to come back and draw 2-2 was sickening and very, very disappointing.
“We just stopped doing the basics, in a game of football it swings both ways and we ended up getting into a game they wanted to play.
“We didn’t really get a foothold in the game after the (Wolves’ first) goal, which is disappointing because at 2-0 you think you’re going to walk away with it.”
However, he added: “From the moment I’ve come in, to the moment we’re at now I’ve seen a big difference after games and the mentality of the boys in terms of…if things aren’t right, things getting brought up, saying something and getting something off your chest that you feel can actually help the situation.
“I think the other night that was needed because at 2-0 we should have won the game, we know the position we are in.”
Arsenal have now drawn their last two Premier League games, which has allowed City to close the gap, and their next test is a north London derby at Tottenham on Sunday.
In addition to their league expectations, a busy fixture list also sees the Gunners through to next month’s Carabao Cup final and they have secured their spot in the Champions League knockout stages, while a trip to Mansfield awaits in the FA Cup fifth round.
The Gunners have finished as runners-up in the last three Premier League seasons but Rice stressed that there is belief within the group.
Asked about feeling the weight of pressure and expectation following their second-placed finishes, he said: “We’re on our own journey and we fully believe in each other.
“We want to do it because we’ve got such a good core group, such quality players now, that we can do it, and it shows then that we can flick a page in terms of people talking about that mentality.”
Arsenal last won the Premier League in 2004 and Rice stressed the need for readiness as his side challenge for that crown.
He added in The Sun: “We’re not going to be handed it, we need to go and win it, we need to deserve it and we need to be ready for anything that is thrown at us.”
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