Declan Rice believes a Champions League quarter-final clash with Bayern Munich is the “perfect” game for Arsenal to overcome defeat to Aston Villa.
The Gunners were deservedly beaten 2-0 by Unai Emery’s men at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday afternoon as Leon Bailey and Ollie Watkins scored the goals to boost Villa’s top-four hopes.
Arsenal would have returned to the Premier League summit with a win but now sit second, two points behind reigning champions Manchester City.
There is no time for Mikel Arteta’s players to lick their wounds, however, as they travel to Germany for the second leg of their finely-poised Champions League quarter-final against Bayern.
A 2-2 draw in north London last week leaves the tie on a knife-edge and Rice feels such a big game is just what Arsenal need after a rare slip-up.
“It’s the perfect game for a reaction,” he said.
“We need a reaction on Wednesday night and it is a great chance to show our character and leadership. It’s time to go out there and hopefully get into the semi-finals of the Champions League.
“We have to park this to the side now. It’s gone, it’s a game of football. We’ve lost but we need to bounce back, that’s for sure.
“Going to the Allianz Arena, it’s going to be a special night. It’s time to pull our socks up and show everyone why we’re in this position.
“We’re gutted and disappointed we’ve lost a massive game but, it’s time for a reaction. We’ve been on such an amazing run since January, won so many football matches and got ourselves back into an unbelievable position after being written off at Christmas.”
This was former Arsenal boss Emery’s first trip back to the Emirates Stadium as Villa manager and the Spaniard severely dented the title charge of his old club.
Villa had already hit the woodwork through both Watkins and Youri Tielemans before substitute Bailey tapped home to break the deadlock late on.
With the hosts pushing for an equaliser, Watkins raced from his own half to latch onto a long ball and double the lead with a deft finish.
The win means fourth-placed Villa opened up a three-point gap on Tottenham in the battle for what looks like being the final Champions League place.
Like Arsenal, they now turn their attention to Europe as they prepare for the second leg of their Europa Conference League quarter-final with Lille, having won the home leg 2-1.
“I definitely will take confidence from it and I think the team should take a lot of confidence from this game as well,” Bailey said of the victory at Arsenal.
“The way we played, coming to the Emirates – I think the way we set out was so strong and I think the team really didn’t give up too much and we created opportunities at the same time.
“I think from this, we should really take this game into consideration and give ourselves a lot of confidence moving forward.”
Eidevall targeting 'full-throttle' approach against Bayern in the Champions League
Jonas Eidevall says Arsenal are going to take a "full throttle" approach as they look to begin the Champions League on a high against Bayern Munich.
Arsenal survived a scare to qualify for the group stage of the competition, coming from behind after a first-leg loss to Hacken to win 4-1 on aggregate.
Having missed out on qualification last year, the Gunners make a return to the Champions League in a group that also includes Juventus and Norwegian side Valerenga.
Arsenal did meet Bayern the last time they played in the tournament, with Eidevall's side turning around a deficit to progress to the semi-finals with a 2-1 victory.
The Swede is relishing the test ahead of them on Wednesday and plans to push his team just as hard in the Champions League as he does in the Women's Super League.
"For me, the Champions League is very special," Eidevall said when asked where the European competition ranks in his priorities.
"We are in four competitions, but the Champions League and the league will always be very special to me and to the team.
"Right now, we are in a situation where we need to go full-throttle in both of them."
In the WSL, the Gunners are unbeaten, though they have won just one of their three matches so far, and were held to a frustrating 0-0 draw against Everton last time out.
Arsenal had 21 shots in that game, but only managed five on target, as they accumulated 0.74 expected goals, also hitting the post.
They have scored just three goals in the league this season and will come up against a free-flowing Bayern, who have scored 18 times in their opening five Frauen-Bundesliga matches.
While Eidevall was frustrated by their lack of a clinical edge against the Toffees, he hopes they can continue their staunch defensive play.
"[Looking at the defence] is the positive way to look at it," added Eidevall. "We are putting such high standards on ourselves, and we are so demanding on ourselves.
"When something is not working that becomes the focus, but defensively against Everton we played a very solid game, we were pressing really well.
"[Bayern] are really strong in counter-attacking. They move with a lot of paces and that part you have to look out for. They are looking really strong on their set-pieces so far this season.
"They are well-organised; they are a good team, but so are we. While they have strengths, they also have weaknesses, and we need to exploit them."
Maguire out for 'a few weeks' as Man Utd injury list grows
Harry Maguire has confirmed he will be sidelined for "a few weeks" after sustaining an injury against Aston Villa.
The centre-back went down holding his calf in the first half of Manchester United's 0-0 draw on Sunday and was substituted at half-time, before he was seen leaving Villa Park in a protective boot.
He has made nine appearances for United so far this season, coming off the bench to score the equaliser in their 3-3 Europa League draw with Porto prior to Sunday’s game.
"Frustrated to pick up an injury at the weekend, will be a few weeks on the sidelines for me, but I'll come back stronger," Maguire posted on Instagram.
He joins Noussair Mazraoui, Alejandro Garnacho and Kobbie Mainoo on United's injury list, with the trio all pulling out of their respective international squads after sustaining issues in that game.
Ten Hag doing 'a brilliant job' at Man Utd despite pressure, says Moyes
Former Manchester United manager David Moyes believes Erik ten Hag is doing a "brilliant job" at the club despite the Dutchman coming under pressure.
United have made their worst-ever start to a Premier League campaign in history, taking just eight points from their seven games so far, and sit in 14th.
It is their lowest tally at this stage of a league campaign since 1989-90 (seven) when they finished 13th in the top-flight.
They are winless in their last five games in all competitions, drawing four of those, including their opening two Europa League matches around a 3-0 defeat to Tottenham at Old Trafford.
The Red Devils have also only netted five goals in the Premier League this term, their lowest at this stage in the competition, with only 19th-place Southampton scoring less than them.
As such, Ten Hag has come under pressure once again, with some reports suggesting the club are lining up potential replacements, though the manager insists he has the backing of the club's hierarchy.
However, Moyes, who managed the club between July 2014 and April 2014, believes the 54-year-old is handling the scrutiny well.
"It's really difficult, but when you go into a job like that, it's always going to be like that," Moyes told BBC Sport.
"I think [Ten Hag] has showed brilliant resilience in the situation he is in. He should be credited for how well he has conducted himself.
"I don't see him ducking any questions or any media interviews, so I think you have to give him great credit for that.
"But it's a job which is going to attract immense pressure and have an immense amount of people talking.
"I think he is doing a brilliant job."
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