Arsenal latest: Rice - World Cup issues are behind me, I'm in good form

2026-09-08 · Sky-Transfer

Mikel Arteta has agreed a new deal to remain Arsenal manager into a fourth contract at the Emirates, fresh from leading the club to its first Premier League trophy since 2004 and within a penalty shoot-out of winning the Champions League.

YOUR VIEWS: Arteta's new deal - and where does he rank in Arsenal history?

Arsenal fans, we're opening up comments - how happy are you to keep Arteta at the club for what may reach into a second decade - and where does he rank on your all-time list of Gunners managers?

'Arteta has reconnected players to fans'

GoonerD: Arteta came in and steadied the ship. He reconnected the players to the fans. It had become fractured during Wenger's last years and the Emery disaster. Arsenal and Arteta have done post-Wenger what United have not been able to do post-Ferguson.

Afclockey49: Very happy he has signed a new deal, we need stability. I wouldn't rank him as being top-five in the history of Arsenal, he's got a lot to do in terms of trophies.

But he has been one of the most important in our history because we could ended ended up like Man Utd, struggling when Wenger left.

MickeyT: Arsenal have top quality players, but under Arteta they play like Stoke. Long throws. Bullying at corners. Not good to watch. He didn't learn that from Pep.

Can Arteta turn champions into serial winners?

Arsenal have climbed to the top of the mountain under Mikel Arteta. Now can they stay there?

Sky Sports' Nick Wright assesses Arteta's chances of building a dynasty after agreeing his new contract.

'Slot won the league in his first season!'

Gunners: One Premier League trophy seven seasons in. Arne Slot won it in his first eight months in the job!

Fri Que: Arteta has won the league and is rightly being rewarded. As a Gooner I'm happy we won the league but not so much it was with him.

I consider him to be a tier two manager - not a Klopp, Ancelotti, Mourinho, Pep or Zidane level tier. And now we are stuck with him.

Merv: I am really pleased Arteta is staying. The board has proven that sticking to a manager and backing him brings success.

I don't really see anyone replacing him for a long time. Maybe Cesc in a few years. Or Declan when he hangs his boots up.

Konsa penalty vs Sunderland wrong, but VAR right not to intervene says KMI panel

The decision to award Sunderland a penalty against Arsenal for an alleged foul by Ezri Konsa on Dan Ballard has unanimously been deemed as incorrect by the Key Match Incidents (KMI) panel, though it voted in its majority to support the decision for VAR not to intervene.

Konsa was punished for excessively holding Ballard during a Sunderland throw-in, but Enzo Le Fee's penalty was saved by David Raya.

The KMI panel decided that the contact while they felt the contact was not enough to award a penalty, they decided that it did not meet the threshold for VAR intervention by three votes to two.

After the match, Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta was critical of the decision, saying that was unacceptable and that he had "watched it 20 times and I cannot find a way to understand how they’d think to give a penalty in that situation or the way the VAR has to intervene."

'Here's how he surpasses Wenger...'

James: Delighted Mikel has extended. He’s definitely up there as a great already but more success is definitely required if he is to surpass Wenger. Another two or three league titles and a Champions League win would, for me, cement him as Arsenal's GOAT.

A: Wenger won multiple Premier Leagues and won the double in his first season. Arteta is nowhere near the level.

Gavin: Stability is our biggest asset currently and this news only adds to it. If our trajectory continues on the way that it has under Mikel, and further trophies follow, I see no reason why he won’t go down as potentially our greatest ever manager.

Premier League so far: Writers' verdicts on Man Utd, Spurs and more

Sky Sports writers assess the early talking points after five games in the Premier League season...

Papers: Rice prepared to commit long-term future to Arsenal

The top stories and transfer rumours from Wednesday's newspapers...

WATCH: 'He's so obsessed with his club' | Arteta set to sign new Arsenal deal

Arteta agrees new Arsenal deal

Mikel Arteta has agreed a new deal to extend his stay at Arsenal.

The 44-year-old's existing contract with the Premier League champions, signed in September 2024, was due to expire next summer.

Transfer Talk: Should Dowman head out on loan? | Isak starts to prove Liverpool worth

Pete Graves is joined by Julien Laurens and Dougie Critchley to discuss whether a loan move for Max Dowman would be beneficial for his development at Arsenal.

The trio also discuss Florian Wirtz's continued struggles at Liverpool as Alexander Isak starts to repay his transfer fee with some important goals.

Plus, why Brighton's good start to the season is partly down to good recruitment the previous summer...

'He's TOO good for a loan!' - Why loaning out Dowman wouldn't work for Arsenal

Speaking on the Transfer Talk podcast, Julien Laurens discusses Max Dowman's impact at Arsenal and why a loan move wouldn't benefit the teenage star.

Title celebrations are 'something I will remember forever'

Sky Sports News' Dev Trehan:

Former Arsenal medical chief Dr Zaf Iqbal says the scenes in north London after the Gunners won the Premier League are something he “will remember forever.”

Dr Zaf left Arsenal at the end of last season after helping the Gunners end their 22-year wait for a Premier League title, with the club also reaching their first Champions League final in 20 years.

> “It was incredible, I still pinch myself,” Dr Zaf told Sky Sports News at the Asian Achievers Awards in London.

> “I’ve come close on a number of occasions, both at Liverpool and at Arsenal, and to finally get it over the line was incredible.

> “I think the best thing about it was seeing how much joy it brought to the team, the staff and what it meant to the fans.

> “That journey on the bus during the parade, the day after the Champions League final, was something I will remember forever.

> “It was just incredible to see people from all different backgrounds so happy because Arsenal had won the league. It was just incredible.”

Dr Zaf was crowned Sports Personality of the Year at the 2026 Asian Achievers Awards.

He is one of English football's most respected doctors, having worked at Liverpool, Tottenham, Leyton Orient and Crystal Palace - and previously serving as chair of the Premier League Doctors Group and co-chair of the FA Medical Society.

On his plans for the future, Dr Zaf added:

> “I feel I’ve got a lot to do and a lot more to give.

> “My main focus now is on helping clubs and other sports institutions to try and improve their sports medicine departments.”

Arsenal's Man City and Newcastle clashes live on Sky

Arsenal's showdown with Premier League title rivals Manchester City will be live on Sky Sports on Sunday November 29 in a 4.30pm kick-off.

The game had originally been pencilled in for Saturday November 28 but will now be on Super Sunday.

Arsenal's trip to Newcastle on Saturday November 21 will also be shown live on Sky Sports, with the game kicking off at the new time of 5.30pm for Saturday Night Football.

Rice withdraws from England squad

Declan Rice has withdrawn from the England squad ahead of their four Nations League games.

Rice played 90 minutes of Arsenal's 3-0 defeat to Brighton on Saturday but will not go on international duty with England.

Rice joins Kobbie Mainoo, Marcus Rashford, Cole Palmer and Tino Livramento in not linking up with Thomas Tuchel's side.

Arsenal's next game after the three-week international break is a home game with Leeds on October 10.

Did Rice escape red for 'petulant' kick? What's the difference with Foden/Fernandes?

Neville: Arsenal didn't get details right at Brighton

Sky Sports' Gary Neville on Arsenal's defeat at Brighton:

> "It's very rare you see Arsenal with that level of space in front of their back four, not pushing up and getting close to shots, Raya not saving them from distance.

> "I watched Brighton sober Manchester United and humble them, and be far better and more intelligent in knowing what to do, and if you're just not quite there against these teams, you get bloody noses at times.

> "You just knew when you get to certain grounds, you'd say to each other in the dressing room before a game, 'If we're not quite at it today, these will do you'.

> "That's the message you're sending to yourself, and Arsenal probably didn't do that enough before the match. They didn't treat it in that way; they didn't get the details right, as they always do.

> "You can have a blip, Arsenal have been so reliable and consistent over the last 12 to 18 months that they're allowed a moment like that, but they've got to get back on the bike quickly when you're a top club and you're a champion team, and you've had that humbling that they had."

Carra: Arsenal losing to Brighton is good for PL - it raises belief

Jamie Carragher says Arsenal's defeat to Brighton is good for the Premier League and will raise belief that teams can hurt Mikel Arteta's side in the same way.

Arsenal slipped to their first loss of the season at the Amex Stadium on Saturday, with goals from Pascal Gross, Charalampos Koustoulas and Chema Andres securing three points for the Seagulls.

Speaking on the Jamie Carragher podcast, Carragher reviewed the defeat.

> "In some ways, and I know Arsenal fans won't want to hear this, it's probably good for the league because I think on the back of winning the title, everyone's almost thought the title's easily Arsenal's," he said.

> "I think most people see Arsenal as the best team and the best squad, but I think that happens a lot, and it happened to Liverpool last season.

> "I don't see that happening with Arsenal, but I think we go into every season looking at one team and thinking no one can beat them, and we make that mistake every year.

> "So it's probably good for the league that most people look at that and think, OK, you can score goals against them.

> "I think Arsenal will be fine. I think it's more about what it does to the other team. I think everyone just raises the belief, don't they, thinking if Brighton can do it, why can't we do it?

> "But what'll hurt Mikel Arteta is the fact that it's the game before the international break.

> "He'll be so desperate to have his players on that training pitch, have a team meeting, go through the game.

> "But he'll have to wait three weeks for that now. And maybe by that time his anger might have subsided, because I'm sure he'll be furious.

> "We can't expect the best teams to perform every single week; it was a real bad one for them, but how consistent has Arsenal been for so long, I'm sure they'll get back on track."

Guimaraes: Arsenal defeat was 'unacceptable'

Bruno Guimaraes believes Arsenal delivered an 'unacceptable' display against Brighton that was well below the standards expected from Premier League champions.

Arsenal's 100 per cent start to the new season ended in abrupt fashion as Brighton put Mikel Arteta's side to the sword with a brilliant 3-0 victory.

Guimaraes, making his first league start for the Gunners since his £75m transfer from Newcastle, said:

> "We are very disappointed, and we have to learn from our mistakes because we were far away off our level.

> "We were too sloppy with the ball, didn't win any duels. And we cannot accept this while wearing this shirt of a champion. We cannot repeat this.

> "It's a lesson for us because we've been on a good run so far. We'd won every game, but this is a game to forget and we have to improve. It was a bad day at the office for everyone, and we have to say sorry to the fans because it wasn't good enough."

Arsenal must make sure blip doesn't become wobble

Sky Sports' Sam Blitz at the Amex Stadium:

Arsenal lost 3-0 but it should have been six. Brighton missed three big chances to add to their hefty tally. We've rarely seen this from Mikel Arteta's team.

The last time Arsenal conceded three goals in a Premier League away game was in December 2023, and the Gunners even won that game at Luton 4-3. The last time they lost by a three-goal margin was May 2023, coincidentally against Brighton.

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