Arsenal: Declan Rice outlines key factor that will decide Carabao Cup final against Man City

Gunners midfielder sends strong message ahead of Wembley showdown

The England midfielder scored one of two goals for the Gunners on Tuesday night to beat Bayer Leverkusen and secure a place in the Champions League quarter-finals, but attention now quickly turns to Sunday’s cup final meeting with City.

It is the first opportunity for silverware in what Arsenal hope could evolve into a quadruple-winning campaign, a possibility not lost on the players.

“Definitely, it could be the start of something,” said Rice. “It is the first trophy that is up for grabs.

“If you win that, the momentum after that, that takes you forward, is massive.”

Sunday’s Wembley showdown will mark a first cup final appearance any in major competition for Arsenal since they hoisted the 2020 FA Cup in Mikel Arteta ’s first season at the helm, and provides a first real test of the hypothesis that this could finally be the successful season the club has flirted with for several years.

City, by contrast, have plenty of trophy-winning experience under Pep Guardiola to call upon.

Regardless, Rice insisted the Gunners’ squad is “looking forward” to the occasion and hold a belief that they can beat anyone at the moment, having pieced together a 14-game unbeaten streak in all competitions.

“The lads are already talking about it in there, we’re excited - we’re ready,” he said.

“At the minute, every game of football we go into, we believe we can win so we’ll be ready and looking forward to it.”

Rice celebrates his goal against Leverkusen in the Champions League last-16 second leg

Arsenal FC via Getty Images

As for what could decide this year’s Carabao Cup final between two clubs well acquainted with one another, Rice’s assessment was simple: “Sunday is going to be a great game against them, and it comes down to how much you want it.

“How much do you want it on Sunday? How much do you want to win a trophy for this team, and these fans?”

The 27-year-old has racked up among the most minutes played in the Premier League so far this season, and the only European outings he has missed have been through illness and suspension .

Admitting he is “shattered” amid the “non-stop” fixture schedule that comes with competing on four fronts, Rice added: “We deal with it the best we can but it’s difficult.

“We find ways to win and it’s all good. Everyone asks where I get my energy from - I just get this second burst of energy.”

He continued: “It’s so hard. I’m not just saying that. It’s mentally really, really tough, as hard as it is physically. You have to be really strong, really resilient. There’s ups, there’s downs. We’re all humans as well. Some days you go in and you’re like, ‘We’ve got another one in two days time, how are we going to get up for it again?’, but you just find that energy from somewhere.

“Obviously it’s amazing for us and the club that we’re in four competitions, and we have an amazing squad where everybody is ready and playing their part in major competitions. We’re in March now, the season ends in May. Two months left to give it everything we’ve got to leave a legacy at this club [and] hopefully win every competition.”

Rice also suggested teammate Eberechi Eze, whose own excellent finish opened the scoring on Tuesday, could be an X-factor of sorts during the run-in.

“There aren’t many players that I’ve seen that can hit the ball like [Eze],” he said. “We need to get him on the ball more!”

Arteta, meanwhile, insisted his team selection and in-game substitutions against Leverkusen were solely focused on the game at hand, but that with progression clinched they now “can start to think about Sunday”.