Declan Rice had no doubt Arsenal were going to go on and beat Atletico Madrid after Bukayo Saka put them ahead in the second leg of their Champions League semi-final.
Saka scored at the end of the first half at Emirates Stadium, where the Gunners saw out a 1-0 win, sealing their place in the final of the competition for the first time since 2006 thanks to a 2-1 aggregate victory.
Rice made his 400th club appearance in all competitions (245 for West Ham, 155 for Arsenal) and was dominant in midfield.
Only William Saliba (77) had more touches than Rice (75) for either side, while the England international completed a game-high 56 passes and won five of his seven duels.
The atmosphere at the Emirates was boisterous, and Rice had no fear once Arsenal hit the front.
“It’s chaos [in the dressing room],” he told Amazon Prime.
“I don’t think you can underestimate what we’ve done in this competition up to this point. We have every right to celebrate that moment, it’s such a big moment, a Champions League final, the most prestigious tournament in club football. We’re trying to soak it all in.
“We knew coming in what was at stake. If you can’t get up for that, you can’t get up for any game of football. The fans spurred us on and once we went 1-0 up, I knew we were going to win, I just felt it. Once you feel something special building, it’s such a good moment to be out here.”
