As we're unlikely to see terraces again at football, this is the virtual equivalent where you can chat to your hearts content about all football matters and, obviously, Arsenal in particular. This forum encourages all Gooners to visit and contribute so please keep it respectful, clean and topical.
I think Rice has come on leaps and bounds the last 2 years. He's 24, already a top player and in 3 years time we will be making a big profit on the 100m when Madrid come for him.
I just think he's perfect for Arsenal. I really feel he'll be a great signing.
We don't need another midfielder who can hit 40 yard passes or someone who scored 10 goals a season (both would be nice of course) our midfield has all that...... We need a destroyer and he does it better than anyone pretty much.....but he is more than just a destroyer anyway.
Tee Cee, perfectly put mate, he’s not an actual destroyer, he wins the ball by timing the tackle superbly, nicks the ball and more often than not springs an attack as opposed to being on the floor after flying into a needless challenge with the ball loose.
By the way I don’t think he has yet been booked this season
On Arsenal’s pre-season tour of the United States, Declan Rice began to grasp the various tactical requirements of playing for Mikel Arteta. After a friendly defeat by Manchester United, he went through video clips with one of Arteta’s coaches. It was pointed out to him that his incorrect positioning in midfield had stopped the team from building a pattern of play.
Throughout pre-season, Rice asked for more of those meetings. He wanted to learn it all & he wanted to do so quickly & by the start of the Premier League campaign, he could feel his understanding growing. [@SamJDean] #afc
We are more solid defensively with him playing deep and protecting the back 4 but he also can play higher up, giving us opportunities to win the ball back in the final third and be straight on an offensive.
Carrying the ball is also a big strength of his, deceptively quick and has the engine to keep going all game.
Our player of the season so far, I would say, possibly the premier league player of the year and he is still only going to get better.
If the question was posed now would you buy Declan Rice for £105m I would hope the answer would unequivocally be yes 100% as his signing in its own has transformed us.
I'm another that thought he was a little above average and was not desperate to sign him and certainly not for £105 million.
He's won me over. I had some doubts about his technical ability, because I'd always seen him as the "water carrier" in the England team and never been that impressed, but he's proving himself a better footballer than I thought and has made a big difference to our side. We still need a top centre mid to play alongside him, because Partey should have been sold last summer and Jorginho (who again I didn't rate, but has been better of late and enabled us to free up Rice to get forward) is only a short term solution. I would also point out that other than Liverpool, this run of results has been against some awful sides and Jorginho will have to do it against City, the scum and Porto for me to be anywhere near convinced.
Anyway, I still think that 105 million was an awful lot of money, because I'd want a serious creative game changer for that amount, but I'm no longer complaining.
I really don't like this "I told you so" attitude calling posters out on posts made months ago based on facts available now. We could all do that. Its poor form.
Personally I thought 105million was too much and to be honest I still think we overpaid. If he drives us onto a PL trophy then yep the 105million was good value. If he doesn't, then we deffo overpaid.
Now before anyone pisses their knickers in outrage I will say that I think Rice is ten times the player now for us than he was for wet sham where he often drifted through games taking the easy Denilson five yard pass option and only occasionally showing true class and drive in his play.
He has proven to be a top player with us and he'd be the first name on my teamsheet along with Saliba.
As I said on the match thread last night, he was spreading that ball around Selhurst Park like butter on hot toast. Bundles of character and leadership, just what this team has lacked since forever, We will look back at that 105 million quid at the end of the season and think absolute bargain, mark my words.
Roddaz loves Deckers
Stu.......In defense of Big Poppa, I'd done a complete 180 and become head of the Deccers Fan Boyz by the time the first game of the season had rolled round.
#FlipFlop
oh and I'm quoting my own posts not, the fucking bang of narcissism off that.......Rodders Knows
