West Ham United fans know they have something special in Declan Rice who is fast becoming the new Roy Keane.
West Ham may not be Manchester United but they certainly possess a midfield talent rarely seen in the Premier League era.
Keane was a once in a generation player for club and country.
It is some reputation to live up to. But all the signs are there that Rice is on the right path to becoming as important a figure for West Ham as Keane was to the Red Devils.
There’s no snarling blood and thunder to Rice’s play as there was Keane’s.
Rolls Rice
A Rolls Royce of a player, the Chelsea youth product, looks like an elegant blend of Keane and John Terry in the heart of West Ham’s midfield.
Manuel Pellegrini has deployed Rice as the anchor in a midfield three.
It is a change of tactic which instantly saw West Ham turn their season around.
Rice may not have the attacking element to his play that Keane did but his influence and ability to read the game, break up play and pass through the lines bear all the hallmarks of the Manchester United great.
Of course Rice may well have been heavily influenced by Keane already during his time with the Republic of Ireland.
The 19-year-old’s recent hiatus comes as he deliberates whether to commit his future to the boys in green or England.
A prodigious talent and potential great
Whoever he chooses will be all the richer for it.
Indeed on the evidence of Rice’s performances over the last year he has literally saved West Ham a small fortune in the transfer market.
But his contract situation remains a concern, even if player and club are confident it will be sorted soon.
The way he marshals the West Ham midfield belies his tender years and his style of play very much resembles Keane when on the ball.
The fact Rice takes the ball so cleanly in the challenge and is rarely caught out on it is a sign of potential greatness for a player in his position.
Pellegrini has been cunning too.
The new Roy Keane is here and West Ham must cherish him
Deploying the youngster as the screen in front of the defence has helped West Ham’s back four after a leaky start to the campaign.
But crucially it has also ensured Rice is not the last line of defence while he still learning on the job and therefore less likely to cost his side in the pressure cooker that is the Premier League.
Last season, as West Ham fans will testify, Rice was the club’s best defender.
This term he is comfortably their best midfielder.
How many players can say that at 19?
Because he goes about his job in a quiet, modest manner Rice does not attract the headlines.
Praised by fans, managers, teammates and pundits alike Rice is surely one of the hottest prospects in Europe.
West Ham have something special on their hands. A prodigious talent that comes along once in a generation, like Rio Ferdinand before him.
The new Roy Keane is here and West Ham must do right by the man who will surely lead them as captain for years to come.
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