West Ham reporter Tom Clark heaped praise on West Ham midfielder Declan Rice for his latest performance in the Europa League.
The Hammers now find themselves in the hat for the next round of the Europa League having dumped out the previous favourite by winning 2-1 on aggregate and beating them 2-0 at the London Stadium.
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Rice, once again led the team out onto the pitch wearing the captain’s armband and continue to lead them for the entirety of the match, even when first-choice skipper Mark Noble entered the pitch late into extra time.
He’s been a regular for a number of years now at West Ham and last night was a display that makes people realise why having made the most blocks and interceptions of anyone in claret and blue with three and winning seven duels, while also racking up the third-most touches with 87 (via SofaScore) as a lot of West ham’s good work went through him.
The midfielder made his 37th appearance for the season for West Ham having only been substituted off once during any game this term and his presence was certainly felt once again in a crucial match for the Hammers with Clark handing him a 9/10 rating, claiming that he ‘led by example’ and it was ‘another huge performance from the captain.’
TIF Thoughts on Clark’s comments…
In a game that meant so much to the Hammers players and fans, it was no surprise to see their star in midfielder step up when it mattered and dominate the midfield against a top team who usually always go far in this competition.
When playing in the Premier League, Rice has had the most touches out of any player in the squad (FBRef), so to see him demonstrate his willingness to get the ball and control such a huge game should’ve come as no shock.
West Ham fans will now be waiting excitedly for their side to take on Lyon in the next round, who managed to scrape past Porto last night.
In other news: Image: West Ham supporters surely excited as huge hint emerges – opinion