“Plays every minute of a football match thinking that a draw is a bad result” – Gary Neville suggests Arsenal may have found their own Roy Keane

Manchester United legend Gary Neville is all praise for Arsenal new signing Declan Rice for playing every game wanting to win.

The new arrival from West Ham United has hit the ground runnning at the Emirates. Having started all four league games, Rice was one of the Gunners' key players in their 3-0 Premier League home win over Manchester United on Sunday (September 3).

The Englishman controlled play from the middle of the park and also created opportunities for his attacking colleagues. Rice capped his outing with an opportunistic strike six minutes into added time. He popped up at the far post to convert Bukayo Saka's corner, marking his first goal for his new club.

Following the game, Neville heaped praise on Rice, opining that the Gunners may have found their own Roy Keane (as per SPORTS JOE):

"You probably thought the game was going to drift to a draw, but then, Declan Rice. I know Jesus scored a third goal, but that second goal for Arsenal by Declan Rice was a big, big moment. That is what he has been brought here (Arsenal) for.

Neville drew parallels with his former United teammate Keane:

"There are big players, and there is a man over there in the studio today, Roy Keane, who would drive his team towards victory. He might not score the winning goal, like Declan Rice did today, but he'd never stop thinking that the victory is the only result."

He added:

"I think Declan Rice plays every minute of a football match thinking that a draw is a bad result, and that is a really important factor. You sign these players for the big moments in the big matches, and he's scored in the last minutes."

Following Rice's strike, the Gunners scored again - through the returning Gabriel Jesus six minutes later - to consolidate the win. They're now fifth in the standings, two points behind leaders Manchester City (12).

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"Tremendous performance" - Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta lavishes praise on Declan Rice

Declan Rice opened his account for the Gunners on Sunday.

Since arriving from West Ham on a £105 million move, Declan Rice has missed only nine minutes of game time in five games across competitions, starting all five outings.

Rice has sizzled in central and defensive midfield for Mikel Arteta's side, and the Spaniard knows he has made a smart acquisition. Arteta also praised Rice for a 'dominating performance' in holding midfield (as per Football London):

"He’s a great kid. I think he’s got a good mixture between being demanding, having a bit of banter and being around the staff in a really humble way."

He added:

"I think a tremendous performance, when you look at how a holding midfielder needs to dominate. He produced a magic moment to win us the game, so really happy with him."

Arsenal return to league action at Everton on September 17 after the international break.