Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice has spoken publicly following the club's Champions League final defeat to Paris Saint-Germain in Budapest on May 30.
PSG won 4-3 on penalties after a 1-1 draw over 120 minutes at the Puskas Arena, securing a second consecutive European title.
Rice focused his comments on the pivotal extra-time incident involving substitute Noni Madueke. In the 103rd minute, Madueke and PSG defender Nuno Mendes both tumbled inside the penalty area, with referee Daniel Siebert waving away Arsenal's appeals.
Rice, who was booked for prolonged protests, told TNT Sports: "I've not seen it back yet, but at the time on the pitch I thought Noni was ahead of him. Looking back at the one we got against Bayer Leverkusen, it was very similar." He added that he was devastated in the moment and did not want to dwell on the decision, with officials later judged to have made the correct call as the players were entangled.
The England international also assessed Arsenal's overall display against the defending champions. He said the team grew into the contest after conceding and created a number of chances as the match wore on.
Rice described the loss as gutting and devastating, but stressed it would not define the squad, stating: "This is only the start for us. We got over the line in the Premier League, this would've been one step further, but it wasn't to be. We keep building."
Arsenal, who had just won the English title for the first time in 22 years, will still hold a victory parade despite the European setback.