“We could have scored 10”

Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice says his side could have scored 10 goals against Tottenham in the north London derby.

The Gunners ran out 2-1 winners thanks to Dominic Solanke’s own goal and Leandro Trossard’s strike.

That puts Mikel Arteta’s men back in second place, four points behind Liverpool, who have a game in hand at the top of the Premier League table.

Speaking after the game, Rice said: “You could tell tonight meant more than anything. From the first minute, the first half was pure dominance. We showed the intention, the pressure, the desire, you can say it’s a derby. I think we were probably unlucky not to score 10 tonight. That’s the feeling.

“You don’t need a message. When you play Spurs, you know what it means to the fans. As a player, if you can’t stand up for Spurs then you shouldn’t be playing football. You need to have that fire in your belly.

“In the second half, the game stretched. They might have scored a couple of goals but we could have scored five or six more – that’s the disappointing thing.

“The three points are the most important. I hope we can run now because this is the most important part of the season.”
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“Unlucky we probably didn’t score 10 tonight”

Declan Rice reflects on Arsenal’s North London derby win 👀

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Despite Rice’s comments, Arsenal only managed an xG of 1.64, suggesting they were more clinical than wasteful in front of goal.

But they still took the three points and Arteta was a happy man in his post-match interview.

He added: “Outstanding today. From the first minute we were really into it, really intense. We played with the real intention of hurting them. We created an amazing atmosphere.

“We know how important the match is. It’s a gift we can make supporters happy.

“The attitude we played with, not complaining about ourselves, was phenomenal. We played 120 minutes three days ago.

“We had great chances and great situations. In the end we had to suffer more than we wanted to.

“When you have opportunities (to close the gap), you have to take them.” We are on a really consistent run in the Premier League. It’s about recovery tomorrow and Aston Villa on Saturday, go and go.”