Declan Rice is playing well for West Ham United at the moment.
Rice is a versatile footballer who can operate as a central defender or as a defensive midfielder.
The 20-year-old has been deployed in the holding midfield role by West Ham manager Manuel Pellegrini this season, and the youngster has done well.
So far this season, Rice has made 23 appearances in the Premier League for the Hammers, scoring one goal in the process, according to WhoScored.
Former Arsenal star Merson does not believe that Rice is a very good central defender, and has suggested that the youngster is better off playing in midfield.
Merson wrote about Rice in The Daily Star: “He’s definitely a holding midfielder for me, though. As a centre-back his positioning is not always great and he loses concentration.
“When you do that playing as a centre-half, you get punished. Not so much in midfield. I just always felt he had a mistake in him when he played in defence.”
Rising star
Rice has done better when he has been deployed in a holding midfield role, but it is also a positive to be versatile.
Given that Rice is only 20 years of age, he can only get better in the coming years.
West Ham have a gem on their hands who could go on to become a world-class footballer, and it could be tough for the Hammers to keep hold of him should bigger clubs from England and Europe come calling for him.
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