The Japan Times - 'Bring it on', says Rice as Arsenal chase Champions League history

The Gunners travel to the Spanish capital for the first leg looking to move a step closer to only their second Champions League final appearance.

Mikel Arteta's side have been labelled English football's nearly men after three successive runners-up finishes in the Premier League.

They have fallen short in Europe as well, losing 3-1 on aggregate to eventual winners Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League semi-finals last season and bowing out against Bayern Munich in the 2024 quarter-finals.

Arsenal have never won Europe's elite club competition, with their lone final ending in defeat against Barcelona in 2006.

The Premier League has become the London club's holy grail after their painful streak of near-misses in recent years.

But lifting the Champions League for the first time would be an equally fitting riposte to those doubting the mental strength of Arteta's men.

Just seven games separate Arsenal from the club's greatest ever season.

They sit three points clear of second-placed Manchester City in the Premier League title race, with four matches to play and five for Pep Guardiola's men.

Three games remain in the Champions League if Arsenal reach the final against PSG or Bayern in Budapest on May 30.

Rice wants his team-mates to prove their past experiences have made them battle-hardened for their pursuit of history.

"We've played in tough games in the last three or four years at the highest level, so we know what to expect and what's to come," the midfielder said.

"That's what it's been all season, and that's what we want it to be towards the end of the season.

"We're Champions League semi-finalists, let's embrace it, enjoy it and bring it on."

- Havertz, Eze doubts -

After losing two high-stakes showdowns with City recently -- a 2-0 League Cup final defeat and 2-1 loss in the Premier League -- the jury remains out on Arsenal's ability to get over the line when it matters most.

A fraught 1-0 win over Newcastle on Saturday was hardly a convincing response to the cynics.

But it did end a two-game losing run in the league and eased a little of the tension after four defeats in their previous six matches in all competitions.

Arsenal are sweating on the fitness of Eberechi Eze and Kai Havertz for the trip to Madrid after they limped off last weekend.

Eze had taken his goal tally for the season to 10 with a sublime strike against Newcastle.

The England midfielder has been a rare source of attacking inspiration in a side whose success has been build on a solid defensive foundations.

And Rice is desperate for his international team-mate to be fit to face Diego Simeone's side.

"That's what he's been brought here to do. I said a few weeks ago, his ball striking is unbelievable," he said.

"What a player, what a guy. He's going to be massive for us these next few weeks. We really need him."

T.Ikeda--JT