Declan Rice responds after fans spot his bizarre pre-match routine for Arsenal and England

Declan Rice has responded after fans spotted his bizarre pre-match routine for Arsenal and England.

Rice has enjoyed an excellent start to life at Arsenal since making the £105 million switch from West Ham over the summer.

The 24-year-old has put on a number of eye-catching displays for Mikel Arteta this season, notably scoring a stoppage time winner against Manchester United back in September.

However, the Englishman has also attracted attention for his fascinating pre-match routine.

Football media company Copa90 posted a series of images showing Rice mid-jump with his arms outstretched as he walked out onto the pitch.

The post was captioned: "The Declan Rice jump has taken over, and we can’t unsee it…"

Rice was quick to reply to the photo on Instagram, insisting that it was something he had been doing his entire career.

He commented: "Only been doing it since the start of my career," alongside a crying laughing face emoji.

Rice is currently away on international duty with England and will no doubt perform his spider-like pre-match jump ahead of the Three Lions' clash against Malta on Friday.

Meanwhile, former Gunners midfielder Emmanuel Petit has suggested he is being 'wasted' by Arteta.

The Frenchman told Compare.bet: "Declan Rice's priority for Arsenal should be to maintain the balance of the side and to win the ball back for his team.

"He does those things so well. I think he is wasted a bit in that number 8 role where Xhaka played last season because he is such a brilliant holding midfielder.

"You cannot ask him to play how Xhaka played last year because that's not his position.

"His best position is as a holding midfielder and that is where the manager should play him, it's fundamental to how Arteta wants to play."