West Ham central midfielder Declan Rice would appear to be improving all the time.
Now a regular star for both club and country, the 22-year-old has made the heart of the Hammers’ midfield his own in the last 18 months.
Suddenly able to add goals to an already well-established all-around game, the London-born star has rightly been earning plenty of admiration.
Speaking on BT Sport during the Irons’ 2-0 triumph over Rapid Wien, ex-Hammer, Joe Cole, was full of praise for Rice’s ongoing development.
He saw the space and he attacked it, and that’s a skill that certain midfielders have got. It’s something that can be learned. Some are more natural than others, but Declan Rice is just putting different parts of his game together. He’s evolving as a player. It was only two years ago that people were thinking, ‘oh, maybe he’s going to drop back into becoming a centre half’, and he’d probably be a top centre half. ut he’s also got the ability to go the other way and score goals. He’s just a fantastic player and he’s really taken the team by the scruff of the neck over the last five or six games. I’ve watched him and he’s coming on bundles. He’s a pleasure to watch.
So far this season Rice has scored twice and provided two assists – already more direct goal contributions than the entire 2020/21 campaign.
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Those numbers tell the tale of a more advanced role for the Englishman this term.
Perhaps owing to the skillset of Tomas Soucek and a more robust defensive line, David Moyes has certainly given Rice more freedom in the opening weeks of the new season.
Hammers everywhere will hope this rich vein of goalscoring form can continue.
