West Ham United’s in-demand midfielder Declan Rice has opened up about facing the toughest opponent in his stunning career so far.
Rice has got better and better since making his debut for the Hammers in 2016/17 season, establishing himself as one of the hottest prospects across Europe.
The defensive midfielder has since been linked with a move to Chelsea as well as both the Manchester clubs. The 23-year-old has so far racked up 193 appearances in all competitions for West Ham, cementing his place in the England national team in the process.
The Hammers’ captain has surprisingly named Tottenham Hotspur’s Tanguy Ndombele as ‘one of the toughest’ he has come up against.
Declan Rice lavishes praise on the £55 million signing
Ndombele was signed by Spurs for a club record fee of £55 million in 2019 from Olympique Lyon. The midfielder impresses heavily from his time at the French club, scoring 5 goals and providing 18 assists in 110 games.
However, he failed to make a mark at Tottenham over his 91 appearances forcing the club to send him back to Lyon on-loan in January earlier this year.
But Rice was full of admiration for Ndombele, who would be returning to North London post the end of his loan spell at his former club.
While talking to HITC Sport, Rice said, “This one will surprise you. He gets slammed and hammered a little bit. It’s going to take you back, but [Tanguy] Ndombele, who was [at] Spurs. The perception of him, it shouldn’t be what it is because I tell you now, he is one of the toughest I have played against.”
He further continued to explain the astute qualities of the French midfielder, adding, “He is top. Just a street footballer on the pitch. He takes the ball anywhere, little flicks and tricks. Like he doesn’t care. He does everything so confidently. With players like that, you just have to let them play. Give them the freedom to go out and do whatever they want. When we played against Lyon in the Europa League, he was incredible. He’s a top player.”
However, Ndombele was not the only midfielder to receive immense appraisal from Rice. The Hammer further talked about some of the greatest men in the business to earn accolades in the Premier League.
“There’s so many (good midfielders) I can’t even describe or pick out one. De Bruyne was just special, the way he thinks about the game, the position he picks up for a holding midfielder is horrible he just makes you think. Same with David Silva when he was in the Prem [Premier League], he was the exact same, couldn’t get near, technically one and two touch was just one step ahead of everyone.
“[Eden] Hazard when he was in the Premier League with Chelsea, I was only just starting then but he was so quick, so agile. Even when I played against Thiago at Liverpool, last season, he’s just so silky. He plays the game at his own pace, he was proper.”
Declan Rice has long been tipped with a move to one of the top-six clubs in the league, taking the next step on his career.
On the other hand, West Ham have been reluctant in letting their boyhood player leave the club. Meanwhile, Rice will now be solely focusing on being on the England roster which will be travelling for the World Cup this year in Qatar.