Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice was forced off with an injury in the first half of the Gunners’ 1-0 win over Crystal Palace on Thursday night, but has since broken his silence on social media
Declan Rice has taken to social media after sustaining an injury in Arsenal’s 1-0 victory over Crystal Palace. Eberechi Eze’s goal in the first half against his old team ensured Mikel Arteta’s squad would restore their four-point lead at the top of the Premier League table.
Losses for Man City and Liverpool meant the Gunners increased their lead over their title competitors, with Bournemouth, Tottenham Hotspur and Sunderland rounding out the rest of the top four.
The win was crucial for the Gunners, who are now consistently achieving results, but the three points may have come at a price, with William Saliba, Rice and Gabriel Martinelli all suffering injuries against the Eagles.
Post-match, Arteta told Football London: “Well, the first one was Willy [William Saliba] that obviously had to be out after the first half, Declan as well was struggling from the first half with a knock that he took, and who was the other one? Ricky. As well. So yeah, let’s see how that will go.”
He added: “On Willy there are two things related to his substitution and with Declan I don’t really know because it was a knock. But I don’t know if it was the calf or the Achilles or what exactly it was.”
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However, Rice seemed upbeat post-match, sharing three images on his Instagram story celebrating the victory.
In the first post, the England international shares a photo of him celebrating after the final whistle, accompanied with the message: “+3 [points]against a tough opponent. Let’s keep building [brick emoji].”
Rice then posted a graphic from the official Arsenal Instagram account, which featured the famous chant: “One-nil, to The Arsenal,’ adding his own succinct message: “Onto the next [loveheart emoji].”
His final story upload after the match was an image of him in action, delivering a set piece into the box.
Thanks to their victory over Palace, Arsenal now have a six-point lead over Manchester City and Manchester United, while Liverpool trail by seven points following their loss to Brentford.
When quizzed about his title rivals dropping points, Arteta revealed in his post-match press conference: “No, I wasn’t aware. I just found out at the end of the game, I think most of the players as well.
“They’re not allowed their phones at half-time, so hopefully they didn’t know about it, maybe through the staff. But yeah, I think I’m really positive.
“We came forward especially because we did what we had to do, and then it shows you the difficulty of the league and how complicated it is to win games.”
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Sky Sports discounted Premier League and EFL package
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Sky has slashed the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle ahead of the 2025/26 season, saving members £192 and offering more than 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more.
Sky will show at least 215 live Premier League games next season, an increase of up to 100 more.
