Why was Declan Rice absent when Arsenal defeated Aston Villa?

Midfielder Declan Rice was missing from the lineup against Aston Villa, with the explanation provided by manager Mikel Arteta. This quickly caused some worry among supporters regarding Rice's condition.

On the morning of December 31, Arsenal hosted Aston Villa at home in the 19th round of the 2025/26 Premier League season, an opportunity for the Gunners to avenge their recent 1-2 loss at Villa Park. In terms of squad, coach Mikel Arteta made two changes to the lineup compared to the victory over Brighton, with Gabriel and Jurrien Timber returning to defense.

As usual, Gabriel started as the central defender alongside his regular partner William Saliba. Piero Hincapie played left-back, while Timber took the right-back position. Notably, Timber returned after missing the Brighton game due to a minor injury.

After playing as right-back last weekend, Declan Rice unexpectedly was not on the matchday roster, whereas Kai Havertz and Ben White recovered in time to be on the bench.

Mikel Arteta commented on Rice's absence as follows: “Declan experienced pain after being heavily challenged on his knee early in the Brighton match. Although he wanted to play, he wasn’t able to recover in time for the Aston Villa game. Of course, Rice is not out for the long term, we believe so. We hope the swelling will reduce and he can resume normal activity soon. Rice is fine.”

Despite Arteta’s reassurance that Rice is okay, Arsenal fans remain somewhat concerned for the former West Ham player. Everyone knows that at this moment, Rice is the most crucial player in Arsenal’s squad.

Returning to the Arsenal vs Aston Villa match, even without Rice, Zubimendi, Merino, and Odegaard were deployed in midfield within a 4-3-3 formation, but Mikel Arteta’s team dominated the visitors and secured a 4-1 victory.

This result helped the Gunners further strengthen their top position, leading second-placed Man City by 5 points, although having played one more game. Thus, Arsenal ended 2025 holding the unofficial title of first half-season Premier League champions for this campaign.