Declan Rice interview: The Arsenal midfielder on the Champions League final against Paris Saint-Germain and rising to the big occasion
Tuesday, May 26, 2026
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"What a chance, what an opportunity," says Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice as his side look to upstage holders Paris in the Champions League final.
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Having captained West Ham to glory in the 2022/23 UEFA Conference League, Declan Rice is preparing for an even more momentous occasion as his Arsenal team take on Paris Saint-Germain in the UEFA Champions League decider in Budapest.
The Gunners lost out to Luis Enrique's charges in last season's semi-finals, but the 27-year-old Rice (described by coach Mikel Arteta as Arsenal's "lighthouse") is certain that his side have learned from that tight two-legged tie as they aim to win the most prestigious trophy in club football for the first time.
On reaching the final
As a kid, you grow up watching Champions League nights, group stages, knockout rounds, the final. Then realising that you're in that moment of being close to reaching a final, you look up at the clock – five minutes to go, two minutes to go – then you finally hear that whistle. Just everything pours out of you really – just relief, pure happiness, pure emotion. It was a feeling that will stick with me forever.
To get to the final is one thing – what an achievement. But to win it… I don't know the words yet, to be honest with you, because it hasn't happened. I don't want to speak ahead of myself, but it'd be incredible.
On being the man for the big occasion
I would like to say I'm a big-game player. When you play in the biggest competitions, you need your players to step up at every single point, and not only just me. I think our team have done that over the last few years in big games – we've stepped up, especially in the Champions League. There's a few of us that have got that in us, and we're going to need that going into the final as well.
In football, you can't determine before the game whether you're going to play well or not. It's the unknown. But what you can control is how you start the game off, how [much] confidence you can build within yourself. And whether that's with your first touch, a tackle, a header, always do the first thing right, and you build from there.
On captaining West Ham to Conference League glory
To be captain at West Ham at such a young age, in a European final, to lift that trophy – the first trophy since, well, since Bobby Moore, other than the [second-tier] play-offs. It was such a special moment.
I've lost a fair few finals now: two EURO finals, the [League] Cup final. It hurts because when you get to a final, you want to win that trophy. But also, all the little losses that you take stand you in really good stead. It makes you [hungrier] to want to go and win stuff, and hopefully that's what we can keep doing.
On Mikel Arteta
He's just turned me into a more [all-round] midfielder, in terms of someone who can do a little bit of everything. I heard Steven Gerrard talk about when he played, he [saw] himself as a midfielder that could do a little bit of everything. I kind of say the same. I can do a little bit of attack, a little bit of defending. If I need to stay and help the defence, I can. If I need to push forward [and] help the attack, I can.
I want to be busy but show my character, my strengths, and I think [Arteta] has really helped me do that over the last few years. From one of the first times I met him, he described me as [Arsenal's lighthouse]. I'd never heard that one before, but he comes out with some stuff that you would never hear about, so that was really special.
On the prospect of facing Paris again
PSG are a really good side. [We] played them over two legs last year. It could have gone either way, so speaking about it now, may the best team win. What did we learn from last season's semi-final defeat? That you've got to take your chances, because we had plenty of them. It wasn't meant to be, but it's [those] moments that set you up for the moments that are coming. We'll be ready.
You need to be on your A game to beat PSG. You need that fuel in your belly from the first whistle, that you're going to win this final. It's the biggest competition in football. Champions League final, it gets no bigger than that. What a chance, what an opportunity. It'll be the last kick of club football for the season, so to go out on a high and give it absolutely everything, one last empty of the tank and give it everything you've got to win such a beautiful trophy with this club.
This interview was conducted on 14 May 2026