Martin Keown has come in for some stick from West Ham fans.
Martin Keown claimed after Newcastle United’s 2-0 win over Burnley that the Toon’s up-and-coming midfielder Sean Longstaff is better than West Ham United star Declan Rice – and Hammers fans are not happy.
Longstaff, 21, has broken into the Newcastle side of late, anchoring the midfield as Rafa Benitez’s side continue to push themselves away from the bottom of the table and a relegation dogfight.
He continued his excellent run of form and momentum with his first Premier League goal, scoring the second in the 2-0 win over Burnley last time out with an excellent finish into the bottom corner from 10 yards out.
Keown claimed that despite all the talk being about West Ham’s Rice, he reckons Longstaff could be even better, comparing Longstaff’s display on Tuesday to that of Manchester United icon Michael Carrick.
“This has been a Michael Carrick type performance by Longstaff. A lot of people are talking about Declan Rice at West Ham, but I think this lad might be better,” Keown said.
Rice has made the holding midfield position in the Hammers starting eleven his own after playing a somewhat bit-part in the West Ham side at centre-back last season. He has started every league game since September 1.
But West Ham fans were fuming to hear that Keown reckons Longstaff is a better player than Rice, and many took to Twitter to criticise the former Arsenal and England defender.
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