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• Arsenal star Rice a worthy Player of the Season contender, believes Parlour

  Declan Rice deserves to be in contention for the Premier League's Player of the Season award and has proven to be the best signing of the campaign, says former Arsenal midfielder Ray Parlour.

  Rice joined Arsenal from West Ham in a £105million deal last July and has had a transformative impact, helping Mikel Arteta's side push Manchester City all the way in the title race.

  On Thursday, Rice – alongside Arsenal team-mate Martin Odegaard – was named as one of eight nominees for the Premier League's Player of the Season prize, with the likes of Phil Foden, Erling Haaland and Virgil van Dijk also on the shortlist.

  As well as helping Arsenal maintain the Premier League's best defensive record in 2023-24, Rice has carried the ball further than any other player in the competition (7,520m), while only seven players have bettered his 147 carries progressing the ball at least 10 yards upfield.

  Parlour says Rice's style reminds him of former Manchester United and England captain Bryan Robson, describing the Gunners man as a true box-to-box midfielder.

  Parlour, an ambassador for NetBet, told Stats Perform: "Mark Noble's not too far away from me and I'd always ask, 'Mark, is Declan coming to Arsenal?' He'd always say, 'I don't think you can afford him!' 

  "I'm so pleased they stumped up the money and he's been brilliant. I never doubted him really because I know his attitude is very good. He wants to learn, he wants to get better.

  "I think with [Thomas] Partey coming in as well, he can get forward a little bit more. He's a little bit more dangerous. He's got a good way of passing, he can probably score more goals if I'm being honest. 

  "The way he plays is like the old-fashioned midfielders. I go back to the older era with people like Bryan Robson, where you'd have to go box-to-box, and he can do that. 

  "He's got the energy to do that, so I like him to get forward a little bit more, but he's been absolutely superb this year and he's certainly my player of the season."

  Defender William Saliba has joined Bukayo Saka in being nominated for Young Player of the Year honours, and Parlour believes the Frenchman is one of several Gunners worthy of recognition.

  "There's been a lot of good performances, though. The two centre-backs have stayed fit this year and they've been excellent, Gabriel and Saliba," He added.

  "Martin Odegaard has been absolutely brilliant as well, he always wants the ball, his vision is very, very good. 

  "But I think Declan has certainly stood out as the signing of the season and then probably player of the season for Arsenal."

  Ray Parlour was speaking on behalf of NetBet Sports Betting https://sport.netbet.co.uk

• Terzic calls on Dortmund to maintain focus ahead of Champions League final

  Borussia Dortmund will not go easy on Mainz in the Bundesliga on Saturday as they look to maintain their rhythm ahead of the Champions League final, says coach Edin Terzic.

  Dortmund are fifth in the Bundesliga with two games remaining, with the performances of German clubs in Europe ensuring that will be enough for Champions League participation next season.

  They are also building towards their third appearance in the final of Europe's premier club competition, having overcome Paris Saint-Germain 2-0 on aggregate in the last four.

  While all eyes will soon turn to their trip to Wembley Stadium to face Real Madrid on June 1, Terzic is determined that his side maintain their intensity levels, even if he rotates his squad.

  "Through this rotation we not only keep the team physically and emotionally fresh but we also give chances to other players," Terzic told reporters on Friday.

  "Our season just got a bit longer and we want to keep the rhythm up. It is about what we have built up in the past weeks and us wanting to still achieve something big, and that cannot happen with us shifting down a gear.

  "We want to make these weeks the best weeks of the season."

  Mainz denied Dortmund the Bundesliga title last season, snatching a 2-2 draw against BVB on the final day as Bayern Munich swooped in to retain their crown. 

  They are now battling against relegation, but Terzic is not thinking of Saturday's game as a chance for payback.

  "They did spoil our summer last year, but they did it fair and square. They had a say last season and did it well," he said. "Now we have the chance to have an influence." 

  Mainz are in 16th place, currently occupying the relegation play-off spot, five points ahead of 17th-placed Cologne.

  More importantly for Terzic, the game marks the start of a three-week build-up towards the Champions League final.

  "We celebrated our qualification for the final on the night and now we have to deal with the situation pragmatically," he said.

  "Now a new preparation starts for the Champions League final with these remaining two Bundesliga matches."

• FC Dallas v Austin FC: Estevez frustrated by Texas derby scheduling

  FC Dallas boss Nico Estevez would have preferred not to face both of the club's Texas rivals in back-to-back home games, but he is keen to follow up their victory over the Houston Dynamo with another against Austin FC.

  Dallas overcame Houston 2-0 on their last home outing in MLS, though they were then beaten 3-1 by in-form Toronto FC on their travels last week.

  Estevez's team sit 13th in the Western Conference with eight points, some eight adrift of Austin in sixth, but he feels there are things they can replicate from the Houston game in their next derby match. 

  "It would be nice for our fans and everyone if the games were a little bit more spread out, right?" he said on Thursday.

  "When you have back-to-back, I feel like it is difficult to get that assignment and motivation and everything right, but for us, it is important. 

  "Austin uses more of the wings and it's a different type of approach. They defend in a 4-2-3-1 or 4-2-2, which is similar."

  Austin, meanwhile, have won four of their last six MLS games (one draw, one loss) to surge up the standings, leaving boss Josh Wolff encouraged ahead of a busy few weeks. 

  "There's no way we can look past one opponent and towards the next," Wolff said. 

  "We have to see who comes through Dallas in a good way and see where we're at physically and where the opponent is at physically.

  "These guys are fit, they're strong and they're in a good space."

  PLAYERS TO WATCH

  FC Dallas – Sam Junqua

  Junqua has recorded a goal contribution in consecutive matches (one goal, one assist), including scoring Dallas’ lone goal at Toronto last Saturday.

  Junqua had only recorded two goal contributions in his previous 35 MLS appearances going back to August 2022.

  Austin FC – Brad Stuver

  Austin’s goalless draw at Vancouver on Saturday was their third consecutive clean sheet, their longest shutout streak in team history. Stuver started in goal in all three games and will be looking to continue that run against Dallas.

  Austin had kept just one clean sheet in their previous 25 matches in all competitions dating back to last July.

  MATCH PREDICTION – DALLAS WIN

  FC Dallas won each of their first three meetings with Austin FC – all in the 2021 season. Since then, Dallas have managed just two wins in seven against Austin (two draws, three losses), including a 2-1 loss at Q2 Stadium on March 30.

  With eight points, Dallas are off to their second-worst 10-match start to a season in club history with only their start in 2009 (six points from 10 matches) being worse. However, seven of their eight points have come in their five home matches.

  Meanwhile, Austin have collected 13 points in their last six MLS matches after totalling just 10 points in their previous 16 league matches dating back to their return from the Leagues Cup last August. The form book often goes out of the window on derby day, however, so their positive run could end here. 

  OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

  Dallas – 46.4%

  Draw – 28.2%

  Austin – 25.4%