Stuart Pearce was critical of Arsenal No.41 Declan Rice during the 3-0 win over Bournemouth earlier today.

The England international was making his 36th Premier League appearance of the season against the Cherries, and played a key role in helping Arsenal secure a hugely important three points.

However, there was one moment in the 7th minute which did not reflect well on Declan Rice – and Pearce made sure to let the Arsenal maestro know about it…

What Stuart Pearce said about Declan Rice

Well, the 62-year-old wanted to see the £105m man be a bit more ruthless inside the box early on.

In the 7th minute, Rice found himself in a fantastic position after winning the ball on the halfway line, driving forward to create a four on three situation for Arsenal in attack.

However, the 25-year-old was a tad hesitant and refrained from shooting, only to end up playing a poor pass to Bukayo Saka after Bournemouth had enough time to get more bodies behind the ball.

Speaking about that moment of indecisiveness at 12:37pm on talkSPORT, Pearce said: “This is where I think Declan Rice can go to another level. Winning the ball on the halfway line, he had players left and right, but he was looking for the pass. I think he should be looking for the shot.”

The man born in Kingston upon Thames has certainly improved in terms of goalscoring this season, netting seven goals in 36 Premier League appearances for the Gunners.

Previously, Rice had only scored ten goals in 204 Premier League outings for West Ham.

Arsenal No.41 can become a real force

In our view, Rice has the ability to become a midfielder capable of scoring 20 goals a season.

The West Ham academy graduate is a fantastic technician, who has shown he can score all types of goals – from long range screamers to well timed headers after a late run into the box.

Therefore, it is not a matter of Rice lacking the ability – right now, he just doesn’t seem too confident about what he wants to do after entering the box at all times, despite flashes of top quality, as seen today.

If Mikel Arteta can ensure Arsenal’s record signing becomes calmer inside the area more often – as he was when providing the assist for Leandro Trossard and netting the third against Bournemouth – the Gunners could have an even better version of Rice on their hands next season.