Declan Rice immediately defended after Arsenal star's behaviour got called out

Paul Scholes called out Declan Rice for his behaviour during the north London derby, but Ray Parlour has joined Mikel Arteta in praising the Arsenal midfielder

Ray Parlour has defended Declan Rice after Paul Scholes accused the Arsenal midfielder of being too emotional during the north London derby.

Scholes slammed Rice over his mistake that led to Tottenham Hotspur scoring their only goal of the match. He gifted Randal Kolo Muani an equaliser seconds after Eberechi Eze 's opening goal, losing possession of the ball after intercepting a Djed Spence pass.

The former Manchester United player believes you need to be calmer in challenging games when going for the Premier League title. Scholes also took umbrage at Rice's call for focus from his teammates after taking the lead.

Parlour, however, praises the England international for not letting the mistake affect his performance. Speaking with BetMGM, he said: "On paper, you'd make Arsenal the favourites to win the game.

"But it doesn't work like that in North London derbies; everybody has got to play well; everybody has got to be at their standards.

Ensure our latest sport headlines always appear at the top of your Google Search by making us a Preferred Source. Click here to activate or add us as a Preferred Source in your Google search settings

"I thought they played well and got the first goal, which is always very important, but then they conceded thirty seconds later. Declan – he's not made many mistakes, but it was a bad mistake he made there.

"But it shows what sort of player he is, though. It didn't affect his game, and he went on to be good again, as usual."

Parlour later added: "We talk about consistency. You've got to do that week in, week out. That's why Gabriel and Saliba have been so good, Rice as well."

FOLLOW OUR ARSENAL FB PAGE! Latest Gunners news, analysis and much more via our dedicated Facebook page

Parlour's stance echoed the sentiment Mikel Arteta shared after the match. The Arsenal manager recalled: "I said at half-time: 'We carry on playing, with the attitude like Declan has done today.'

"When he made an error, the way he played after, that's attitude, personality and courage to stand up in a difficult moment – attitude, how you approach things.

"You can feel sorry for yourself. You can look at: 'Oh, look at this stage.' But when you're kids, you dream to play these kinds of games, you recognise the opportunity that we are lucky to be where they are."