Did you see Declan Rice? Or reasonably how did you not see Declan Rice? At Anfield, the loudest and meanest area in Europe, in opposition to a rageful Liverpool, there have been massive swathes of the sport when it appeared that there was a couple of Declan Rice on the pitch.
He was there disrupting a go; he was right here bursting forth to create some house within the midfield; he was there mopping up for the faltering centre-back, heading a ball away to security; he was there too, within the closing third slipping in a go into the field. Was it visible trickery of the retina-dazing fluorescence of Arsenal’s away shirt, or was it for actual? For, how can a footballer carry out so many roles! Had been you certain he was not an AI-spawned robotic footballer?
However that’s how Rice has been for Arsenal this season, immense and impactful. A match away from the midway level, the 105 million kilos invested on him final summer season already looks like cash effectively spent, at a time when a ridiculous amount of cash is spent on ridiculously inferior footballers. He didn’t rating or make an help, however made 5 important clearances, two decisive tackles and as many interceptions, ran extra miles than any midfielder on the pitch, and made 73 passes with a completion fee of 87.3 %.
However not one of the numbers embody the character he wielded on the sector. It’s exhausting to think about such a strong footballer on the coronary heart of Arsenal’s midfield for the reason that days of Patrick Vieira. Higher nonetheless, he’s a Vieira wrapped in velvet, his combativeness hidden in plain sight. At his sight, Liverpool’s attackers would all of a sudden lose their composure, their minds frazzle, they misplaced the ball, they misplaced perception. They might slither and slide away from him, like when maneuvering a cursed bend on the freeway. It’s their destiny that the bend nonetheless will get them.
Liverpool’s Trent Alexander-Arnold, middle, makes an attempt a shot at objective in entrance of Arsenal’s Declan Rice and misses throughout the English Premier League soccer match between Liverpool and Arsenal at Anfield stadium in Liverpool, England, Saturday, Dec. 23, 2023. (AP Picture/Jon Tremendous)
Like when the irresistible Mohammed Salah stole a ball round 20 yards exterior the Arsenal field, and breezed forth in direction of objective. Then, from the nook of his eye, he noticed Rice quick advancing. He was a number of yards away, however Salah felt the stress and as an alternative of taking pictures from a normally favorite perch, from the inside-right channel of the field, he slipped in a go for Cody Gapko however ended up over-hitting the ball to the goalkeeper. The Arsenal centre-backs breathed a sigh of aid and thanked Rice for saving the blushes.
It was not technically his chore to cowl the goalkeeper, however he alone had the imaginative and prescient and drive to sense the hazard and the braveness to snuff it out. Rice didn’t contact the ball however his presence alone mattered to scramble the mind of the Tenth-highest goalscorer within the league.
It was Rice once more who converged into Trent Alexander-Arnold in a five-on-two state of affairs, when the Liverpool full-back hit the underside of the crossbar. He made midfield management a type of bodily artwork type, impeccable as he was along with his timing and motion.
Talisman
Such match-defining moments are splattered all by the season, when Rice has emerged as Arsenal’s tour de drive, the footballer who embodies the membership’s dedication to win the league, after coming so shut final 12 months. In all of their pivotal moments, there was Rice.
Two of his three objectives have arrived in stoppage time, each (in opposition to Manchester United and Luton City) have been match-winners. The challenges would develop into stiffer because the season hits the second half after the video games on Boxing Day. It’s additionally after Christmas that the Gunners are inclined to implode. However this time, they’ve Rice.
It’s exhausting to think about a participant remodeling a aspect so swiftly in half a season upon his arrival. Supervisor Mikel Arteta has been rigorously constructing a aspect. Rice was supposedly the lacking piece, although new holes have crept up in different areas of the sector. Arsenal have to construct depth, purchase a confirmed goal-scorer and fill holes within the back-line to emerge as a European superpower. However for now, Rice and Arsenal are in the midst of one thing particular, partying on Christmas on high of the league.
It’s additionally an instance of sensible scouting. A lot was made when Arsenal shelled out such a daft sum for him. However the critics discounted a number of huge components. A) High quality defensive midfielders come at a worth, the second-most costly entity after strikers. B) Rice is a confirmed one, with glittering numbers over years; and C) He has the management qualities to encourage a workforce on his personal.
Furthermore, Arsenal had finished their due homework on him earlier than loosening their purse strings. Final 12 months, he gained again possession 334 occasions from opponents, probably the most by any participant within the league, 31 greater than Manchester Metropolis’s impeccable Rodri. He additionally ended the marketing campaign with extra interceptions (63) than anybody else within the Premier League. He additionally dribbled previous gamers 20 occasions, a fee of .6 occasions per 90 minutes. Rodri’s was .9.
Behind each profitable Premier League dynasty, there was an influential No.6, from the occasions of Roy Keane and Vieira, from N’Golo Kante to Rodri. Arsenal have discovered one in Rice. In opposition to Liverpool, although, Rice was a couple of quantity, and a couple of man.