Revealed: Declan Rice’s defiant eight-word rallying cry to Arsenal team-mates in pre-match huddle ahead of PSG showdown

Declan Rice issued an eight-word rally cry to his Arsenal team-mates ahead of their crunch Champions League semi-final first leg against Paris Saint-Germain.

The Gunners went into what was one of the biggest games in their recent history on the back of a stunning victory over holders Real Madrid, after winning 5-1 on aggregate to allow their fans to start believing.

Mikel Arteta had issued his own rallying cry to fans before the game, asking them to create a stellar atmosphere inside the ground as they looked to take an advantage into the second leg next week.

And it appeared that message translated to his team too, and the Amazon Prime Video cameras caught Rice’s message in the huddle at the end of the warm-ups.

Rice has been a focus of Arsenal’s Champions League run, with the England star netting two stunning free-kicks three weeks ago to put his side on course to beat Madrid.

And it was he who took centre stage in the huddle, with captain Martin Odegaard allowing Rice to tell his team-mates: ‘If we don’t have the ball, we die.’

The game started in the worst possible way for Arsenal, though, as they conceded within four minutes at the Emirates

Wayne Rooney (left) said Rice ‘has been getting up to world class’, while Theo Walcott (right) branded him ‘captain material’

It was a slow start for the Gunners, though. Ousmane Dembele netted the opener in the fourth minute, silencing a loud Emirates in north London.

Wayne Rooney, meanwhile, who was working on punditry for the game, was full of praise for his countryman before kick-off.

‘I think he has been getting up to world class,’ Rooney said. ‘He has changed his position slightly of late and it suits him.

‘I would have liked him further forward today. Vitinha for PSG is important, but, in terms of the midfield three for both teams, it’s important to get the balance right of when they go forward and who is controlling the defence and organising.’

Rooney’s comments came after it was revealed that Rice would be playing a deeper role than where he has had most of his success this season.

This term, he has flourished in a more attacking role with support behind him in the form of Thomas Partey – but his fellow midfielder was suspended after being booked against Madrid. Rice at the time appeared frustrated, grabbing Partey on the pitch, and he was forced to adapt in the first leg against PSG with Jorginho also out injured.

‘Rice is a completely different profile [to Vitinha],’ Theo Walcott added. ‘The psychical output he creates.

‘I love how Rice carries the ball. He is a completely different profile, he is so gifted in a team playing well. He is captain material playing like that.’

On the huddle, Walcott said: ‘That just shows there the leadership qualities we were talking about. He knows how important it is to starve PSG of the ball and see what they are like off the ball.