Mikel Arteta has downplayed concerns over Declan Rice's fitness after Arsenal's 2-1 win over Slavia Prague in the Champions League on Wednesday night.
First-half goals from Noni Madueke and Viktor Gyokeres gave Arsenal a commanding lead, but Arsenal struggled in the second half and Slavia Prague deservedly pulled a goal back through Wiktor Nowak in the 90th minute.
Rice's Second-Half Fatigue
Rice completed a full 90 minutes in Prague, but the 27-year-old showed clear signs of tiredness in the second half.
'Declan Rice is by far the best midfielder in the country, for me,' former Arsenal and England Women's midfielder Karen Carney told TNT Sports after Arsenal's win. 'When he's tired and fatigued they are a different team, and when he's not in it. In the second half he looked absolutely exhausted and then that's, for me, when Arsenal are a different team and they kind of lose their way a little bit. So that's something I'm a little bit concerned about because he's a top player but when his energy goes I think they slightly fall apart a bit.'
Arteta's Response
But when asked about the decision to play Rice for a full 90 minutes against Slavia Prague, Arteta said: 'The game required it, and he did. He was as well rested against Fleetwood so he had a very good week to recover before Liverpool. It's his second game in a week and not the fifth one. We expect our players to be able to do that and I think he had some very good moments throughout the game.'
Former Liverpool and England midfielder Steve McManaman, who was a TNT Sports pundit alongside Carney for Arsenal's game, also feels Arteta lacks squad depth in his attack.
McManaman on Squad Depth
'They haven't got enough forwards, have they? They just put more midfielders on and then move midfielders into forward positions so they all just lose a little bit of shape, that's what I find,' McManaman said. 'You've got Declan on, you've got Zubimendi on, you've got Merino on, you've got Odegaard on, yet they were still just running all over and losing the ball. So even the best can sort of lose their minds a little bit in European games. It shows you have to be focused all of the time, but the main thing is they've got the result, they went to Prague after a difficult Liverpool game and got three points. If they win against Hull at the weekend everyone will forget how difficult this game was.'
