Regroup and go again, Declan Rice urges Arsenal ahead of away Sevilla clash in Champions League
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Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta and midfielder Declan Rice following the 2-2 Premier League draw with Chelsea.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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SEVILLE – Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice has urged the Gunners to “regroup and go again” when they travel to Spain to take on Sevilla in the Champions League on Tuesday.
Mikel Arteta’s men head into the clash on the back of a hard-earned 2-2 English Premier League draw
Following that match, the 24-year-old posted on Instagram: “Another big week coming up. Regroup & go again! Thank you Gunners (red heart emoji).”
Having somehow maintained their unbeaten streak in the Premier League, Arsenal will hope they can return to winning ways in the Champions League.
The Gunners have dropped to second in Group B following a 2-1 loss to Lens the last time out, with the French side a point ahead and leading the group.
Manager Arteta also sent a warning to their opponents after the Chelsea stalemate, saying: “I could see at half-time, it was a knife between our teeth and we had to do better and the game was still there for us. We had that belief.”
His team will be seeking to win a Champions League away game for the first time since December 2016, when an Arsene Wenger-led team beat Basel 4-1 in Switzerland.
Arsenal and Sevilla have met twice, both in 2007, when the Gunners won 3-0 at the Emirates but lost 3-1 to their Spanish opponents at the Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan before both sides advanced to the knockout rounds.
The clash is expected to be evenly poised, and Arteta will be boosted with a healthy squad, with the exception of long-term absentee Jurrien Timber.
Over in the Sevilla camp, coach Diego Alonso, who was appointed earlier in October, took charge of his first game over the weekend and emerged with his head held high in a 1-1 home draw with Real Madrid in La Liga.
The team, however, have now drawn three consecutive games and victories have been rare this season.
“There’s still a long way to go but the way to build, is to do things as we did (against Real), to stand up without fear,” said Alonso, as he looked ahead to the Arsenal match.
“I’m happy with that but not the result, because winning is the only thing that matters.
“Tuesday will be a challenge, especially based on who the opponents are. But we have confidence in our resources and we’ll try to strengthen them and impose ourselves on the match.”
Sevilla have won only two games this campaign, against Las Palmas and Almeria, but the hosts can be optimistic as both of those victories were clinched at home.
