12 Sep 2020 21:15:06
Posted before about Declan Rice and posting again, please Chelsea don't go anywhere near him. What does he offer? Kante must stay at all costs, build the team around him. even Jorginho offers more than Rice.
12 Sep 2020 22:01:54
I don't rate him above Kante (only a mad man would) but I do think he'd improve us over Jorginho. Rice made the most interceptions in the league last year, he drives forward more, he's taller and more physical than most of our midfield and, this is the main point, he is a leader and talks. Its been said over and over one of our main problems is no one talking, Kova, Kante, RLC, Jorginho are all pretty quiet. You sometimes need to sacrifice a bit of skill for a bit of steel.
12 Sep 2020 22:32:03
G8 I am with you on this one. We have Kante and therefore we do not need another defensively minded midfielder who isn't as good as Kante, Kovacic or Jorginho. I just watched him Vs Newcastle and I'm not sure what he offers with the ball. Yes he may add steel but from a creativity perspective having him alongside Kante may mean we are slow in transition. He can't do what Kovacic or Jorginho do with the ball. As a midfielder Rice is a big 'no'.
13 Sep 2020 08:11:13
I'm with you 100%. This is what I was trying to explain to some of our other posters recently.
You look at him and he has everything needed to be a world class CB but in midfield you need to put your foot on the ball, pick a pass. He seems to win the ball and then gives it away.
I don't know how we'll line up but for me a duo of Kova who is a ball carrier and Kante who wins the ball seems ideal. Judging by what I've seen for France, Kante is back!
13 Sep 2020 09:19:20
Just to make sure I'm right, we therefore stick with the midfield pairings that haven't flourished all last season? Rice is technically not as good as what we have but I think a lot of people underestimate how important it is to have leaders on the pitch. Im also baffled how people think we'll lack creativity with Havertz, Ziyech, Pulisic etc. On another note, im convinced Lamps likes Rice as he can set up with a 4 and Rice in the pivot and then if he needs to, go to a back 5 with Rice dropping in. None of our current crop offer that.
13 Sep 2020 09:44:10
Also by Judging on what Lampard recently said about Kante. ðŸ‘.
13 Sep 2020 13:52:57
We never had any pairings in midfield all last season. We chopped and changed due to Kante being out for most of it. Let's give Kova and Kante a chance to form a partnership.
FYI we saw how well Rice plays in a pivot for England. Him and Phillips looked lost. Neither of them pushed the team forward, just sat in and defended. The same thing happened against Newcastle last night.
Like I've said. Buy him for a CB, 100% but he's not dynamic enough for a Midfielder.