The West Ham United youngster has really risen to prominence this season.
West Ham ace Michail Antonio spoke exclusively to BBC Radio 5 Live’s Monday Night Club (Monday January 14th), and raved about the quality of his teammate Declan Rice, sharing how frustrating he is to play against in training.
The 20-year-old has been quite simply superb for the Hammers this season, and even though he is still incredibly young, he is already considered as one of the finest deep-lying midfielders in the Premier League.
Rice has proven himself to be a vital cog in Manuel Pellegrini’s machine, and the Chilean deserves great credit for providing the youngster with a platform to showcase his true worth this season.
One of the defensive midfielder’s best qualities is his ability to break up the play of the opposition, and Antonio told BBC Radio 5 Live’s Monday Night Club how frustrating that is when they square off against each other during training:
“For Dec, at this stage his biggest qualities are his break up play. He does it to me all the time in training and it’s so frustrating. I’ve picked the ball up and gone on my break, thinking I’m running down the wing and he just comes across, getting those long legs across you and breaks it up.”
If Rice continues to improve, he will undoubtedly become a genuine star in the game, and the latest in a long line of talented youngsters to have been nurtured and developed in east London.
West Ham fans will be hoping that their club breaks the mould by keeping hold of this one, however.
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