Declan Rice was requested to play in a “weird” role against Sevilla in the Champions League Wednesday night, according to Arsenal icon Thierry Henry.
The Gunners defeated the Spanish team with a resounding 2-1 victory. Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Martinelli both scored goals to secure the victory, but Henry’s CBS Sports coverage was primarily on Rice./winorlose
Declan Rice, according to Thierry Henry, had a “weird” position during Arsenal vs. Sevilla.
Last night, Declan Rice began the game for Arsenal as a left-sided number eight, while Jorginho was selected by Mikel Arteta to play in the defensive midfield position.
The England international performed admirably. He dominated the midfield battle, was all over the field, and looked dangerous every time he broke forward with the ball.
It would be interesting to examine Rice’s performance in possession in more detail. The manager of France’s U21 team, Thierry Henry, revealed to the world how a manager approaches the game.
During Arsenal’s build-up play, he saw that Rice was truly deep in his own half, but surprise, he was high up the pitch to press Sevilla when the Gunners lacked the ball. Last night, Henry thought that part was a little “weird.”
He said about Rice on CBS Sports: “He had a weird role on the night Declan Rice as he was low to build up and high to press. We talk about an offensive balance and you have a 2-3-5 with Ben White on the side and the two holding as Jorginho and Declan Rice but there is something very interesting.
“When White goes, Saka has to stay and keep the shape of that offensive balance which Sevilla didn’t deal with. Saka keeps the structure of the team, Odegaard comes but he will never go high unless they switch.
“Off the ball, he [Rice] plays as a 10 because he has an eye on their holding midfielder, they wanted to make sure the two holding were never going to be on the ball.”
Jamie Carragher then jumped in and said: “He is the centre forward, forget he is Declan Rice. So when you talk about a complete midfield player, he is the highest person to press and the deepest player to build.”
Henry replied: “That’s why Mikel Arteta went to get him because he can do so much for you, off the ball and on the ball.”/WINORLOSE/
Time for another lesson. 📚
Thierry Henry breaks down the key moments in Arsenal's 2-1 win over Sevilla. pic.twitter.com/ViWCCoKnyb
— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) October 24, 2023
