Declan Rice names the best player he’s played with at Arsenal

Declan Rice did not need long to think when asked who is the best player he has played alongside at Arsenal.

The celebrations continue for Rice, his Gunners teammates and Arsenal fans everywhere after they were confirmed as Premier League champions on Tuesday night.

Manchester City’s draw at Bournemouth meant Arsenal are Premier League champions with a game to spare and for the first time in 22 years.

They go to Crystal Palace on Sunday to complete their Premier League campaign, before attention fully turns to the Champions League final against Paris Saint-Germain on May 30.

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Rice has been doing the media rounds after partying through the night on Tuesday and into Wednesday morning.

One question he has been asked is who the best player he has played with since joining Arsenal and he was quick to say it is teammate for both club and country, Bukayo Saka.

‘Any player? I’m going to have to say Saka,’ Rice told TNT Sports.

Saka has also had high praise for both Rice and manager Mikel Arteta, who he credits for transforming Arsenal during his time in charge.

‘The faith he’s put in me since the start and how he’s transformed this club. Not everyone knows but we see it every day, how hard he works, how much he wants this,’ Saka told Sky Sports.

‘It’s been tough. We’ve had so many narrow losses. He’s had to always buck up the ideas, recruit.

‘This man here [Rice]. I remember when he came, I FaceTimed him, I was in LA and I said, “Bro, thank you man.” Because we need guys like him and he’s stepped up this season.

‘Mikel has been amazing for this club, he’s a hero here. He really deserves this.’

Rice says it was Arteta who convinced him to join Arsenal from West Ham in 2023 when he had other clubs interested in his signature.

‘Obviously at that time I had a few options, but after weighing everything up after speaking to Mikel I’d never been so convinced that I wanted to play for Arsenal and that manager,’ said the 72-cap England star.

‘He’s just so convincing. He looks you in the eye, tells you the plan and tells you what he’s going to do and everything he’s said has come true. It’s incredible.

‘I knew winning one with Arsenal would mean so much more than anything else, just because where the club’s been, what they were building through, the young players that they had. I just wanted to be part of that.

‘Like I said, as time’s gone on and we’ve got older, we’ve matured so much as a team over the last few years. I made the best decision.’