Speaking on the Footballer’s Football Podcast, Michail Antonio has been full of praise for Declan Rice.
The West Ham midfielder is, undoubtedly, one of the very best players in England at the moment, and according to Antonio, he’s an absolute menace in training.
Rice may have made his name as a box-to-box midfielder, but according to Antonio, he shows a lot of flair behind the scenes at West Ham, claiming that his feet are like Ronaldinho’s at times.
What’s been said?
Antonio was asked to name any players who’ve surprised him with their abilities.
“Which other players have shocked you on how good they are? In terms of being really tall or really small, but they’re actually a really good player. If someone is tall you’d think they can’t use their feet, and they can be pushed off the ball, has anyone surprised you.
“Declan Rice, his feet are like Ronaldinho, flip flaps, the tricks he has in training are insane. Insane, you can see it in games, how he drives with the ball. When he came into the team he was a centre-half, but he was still doing all of that stuff just for banter in the training ground. It is crazy, that guy’s feet are unbelievable,” Antonio said.
Steady on
We don’t doubt for one second that Declan Rice is an absolute joke in West Ham training, but we can’t help but feel that comparing him to Ronaldinho is a step too far.
Indeed, while Rice is a good dribbler, Ronaldinho is arguably the trickiest player of all time.
Of course, this is hyperbole from Antonio, but it is interesting to hear that Rice has these tricks in his locker.
Rice is already a confident player, but perhaps if he becomes more assured he’ll bust out a few of these skills in Premier League games this season.
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