Don’t worry about possession, Declan Rice showed Mikel Arteta exactly how to play against Real Madrid with what he did v Brentford

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Arsenal play a season-defining game away at Real Madrid on Wednesday night.

The Gunners are 13 points behind Premier League leaders Liverpool with six games remaining, and thus, Mikel Arteta’s team’s fortunes rest on the outcome of their Champions League campaign.

Real Madrid were defeated 3-0 by Arsenal in the first leg at the Emirates, meaning the North Londoners merely have to prevent Los Blancos from pulling off a remarkable comeback at the Bernabeu.

This should make Arteta’s game plan relatively straightforward, and one moment in the Brentford clash highlighted exactly what the Arsenal boss ought to do in the Spanish capital.

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Declan Rice showed Mikel Arteta how Arsenal should play against Real Madrid

Arsenal were held to a 1-1 draw with Brentford on Saturday afternoon, in a game that saw Arteta ring the changes.

It was a relatively inconsequential affair with the Bees, although the goal the Gunners scored stood out.

Declan Rice was released by David Raya following a Brentford corner and the midfielder proceeded to go on a lung-bursting run forward before feeding Thomas Partey, who tucked home the opener.

The goal demonstrated Arsenal’s ability to effectively hit teams in transition, with Rice’s athleticism and excellent decision-making a key part of this.

This should inform Arteta on how to set his team up against Real Madrid on Wednesday, with the Gunners primed to hit the Spanish giants on the counter-attack.

The North London outfit are excellent at sitting in a low block and negating talented attacking teams, while their new-found ability to counter quickly makes this even more of an appealing game plan.

Arteta’s team should sit deep, and let the likes of Rice, Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli exploit the space Real Madrid will leave in transition.

It’s a recipe for scoring at least once at the Bernabeu, which would then require Carlo Ancelotti’s team to score at least four times to even take the tie to extra-time.

Declan Rice can continue his new role at the Bernabeu

Arteta hinted that Rice is playing a new role after the Brentford game, and it certainly appears he’s taking on more offensive responsibility.

The Englishman took five shots against Real Madrid, and he was clearly tasked with making late runs into the box.

An excellent ball-striker and effective at timing his darts forward, Rice has the potential to develop into a prolific goal-scoring midfielder at Arsenal.

This new role will be pivotal at the Bernabeu.

The Gunners are likely to be conservative generally, with Partey and Martin Odegaard playing withdrawn midfield roles, focusing on retaining the ball and stopping Real Madrid from forcing high turnovers.

This will liberate Rice to be the midfielder who joins the attack with his runs from deep when Arsenal do opt to get forward.