Declan Rice has been the talk of the town after his performance for Arsenal against Burnley.
The Gunners played before their title rivals, Liverpool and Manchester City, on Saturday, and they had to get the win to put pressure on them.
Mikel Arteta’s men did exactly that, and Rice was on another level. He scored a goal and won the Player of the Match award for his brilliant display.
Former Gunner Paul Merson was blown away by the England international.
Paul Merson says Declan Rice has become a ‘scary’ player
Rice’s performances at Arsenal this season have often been overshadowed by some of his teammates.
Summer signing Martin Zubimendi has been excellent next to the Englishman, while Eberechi Eze has also impressed in the number 10 role.
However, Rice has quietly had a fantastic season, and everyone has been raving about him since his Man of the Match display against Burnley.
On Soccer Saturday on Sky Sports, Merson heaped praise on Rice. He claimed that it was close to a 10/10 performance by the Arsenal man, who he says has become ‘scary’.
“Declan Rice, he wouldn’t have been far off a 10/10 against Burnley,” Merson said.
“His header was phenomenal. He has run the length of the pitch. Everything he does, he just doesn’t stop. I thought he was phenomenal.”
The former Arsenal midfielder later added: “I could easily give Rice a 10/10 rating. I’ve never seen anything (like it).
“He just doesn’t stop running, he does all the hard work, he just does everything. It’s scary.”
Declan Rice’s stats vs Burnley are incredible
Viktor Gyokeres had his best game in an Arsenal shirt against Burnley – he was sensational. But Rice was even better.
The Englishman dominated the midfield from start to finish. He was absolutely everywhere, and Burnley just couldn’t deal with him.
In his 90 minutes on the pitch, Rice had 94 touches of the ball and completed 63 of his 69 attempted passes, thus maintaining a very impressive 91 per cent passing accuracy.
His corner led to Arsenal’s opener, and he scored the second himself. Along with that, he created two chances for his teammates.
Off the ball, the midfielder made five tackles and won them all. He also registered three clearances, four interceptions and a staggering nine recoveries. (Sofascore)
That is why Rice won the Player of the Match award, and we won’t be surprised if he goes on to retain his Player of the Season crown as well.
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