‘Rice among best five midfielders in the world’published at 10:26 5 July
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England and Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher has been speaking about Three Lions colleague Declan Rice, describing the player he first met at Chelsea’s academy as among the best five midfielders in the world.
“He is a top guy and also a top footballer, he
is doing brilliant ever since he first put the England shirt on and I think he
leads by example as well so a lot of credit to him as a footballer and a top
guy as well,” Gallagher told BBC Radio 5 Live.
“I remember so clearly the first tournament we
went abroad, it was under-9s, under-10s, I remember we won the tournament but
in the final the midfield was me, Dec and Mason Mount in front so I just
remember it so well because those two have gone on to achieve great things. Dec
was always a great lad growing up as well.
“As a character he is exactly the same, to be
fair, he is always having banter and joking around and always laughing.
“As a footballer he has grown and is so physical
and strong and powerful. Obviously, it’s hard to compare a nine-year-old Dec to
25. I think he is pretty much a world-class midfielder, he’s been fantastic for
Arsenal so far and I’m sure he’s going to keep improving.
“I would say around the top five [midfielders in the world]. I can’t think
off the top of my head now but he is definitely up there and the exciting thing
is he’s getting better as well.
“He’s only just moved to a top team like Arsenal
and he’s still improved massively from when he was at West Ham. So it’s really
exciting for everyone England and like I said, he’s a top guy as well.”
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