Hard work and determination to improve see Rice march on

West Ham midfielder proving his credentials as a world-class player with stellar displays

- Jack Rosser

DAVID MOYES raised a few eyebrows last month when he said rival clubs missed out on a bargain in the summer when Declan Rice was valued at £100million. The feeling at West Ham is that Rice is now worth significantly more than that and, given his stellar form, it is hard to disagree.

After driving the Hammers to a sixth-placed finish last season and enjoying a brilliant summer with England at Euro 2020, Rice has pushed himself to new heights this campaign. He has become a leader for club and country and this week John Terry described the 22-year old midfielder as “the best in his position in world football”. On current form, you could make a legitimate argument that the former England captain is right.

Going into Sunday’s 3-2 win over Liverpool, Rice was leading the way in the Premier League for blocks, interceptions, passing accuracy, possession won, successful passes and tackles won. Producing another outstanding display against Liverpool, he was top in the stats for possession gained, tackles, passing and passing accuracy in the game.

Rice is one of the few England starters who reached the Euro 2020 Final to have made a strong start to the season.