LONDON, ENGLAND - JANUARY 19: Declan Rice of West Ham United takes a shot during the Premier League match between West Ham United and West Bromwich Albion at London Stadium on January 19, 2021 in London, England. Sporting stadiums around the UK remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)
According to 90min (h/t Liverpool Echo), Liverpool have entered the race to sign Declan Rice. The report states that the West Ham starlet’s value has gone down due to the pandemic and the club could accept an offer of around £50m. A host of other Premier League clubs such as both Manchester clubs and Chelsea are also after Rice.
For a good 2-3 seasons, Liverpool have been the benchmark for success in England. They had one of the best squads as they romped their way to the Champions League and the Premier League. However, as all good things must come to an end, so did Liverpool’s cushion of having a fully fit squad.
They been ravaged by injuries this season to the point that their entire first-choice defence was out. The midfielders and attackers were out for various periods of time too as players had to play in makeshift roles.
This has, in turn, affected their performance in a drastic way with the club limping at 4th place while the title rivals are slowly gaining advantage. It is imperative that the Reds add some more utility players to their side, so as to not face this sort of situation again.
There’s a reason why Declan Rice has been the talk of the town in recent seasons. He has become one of the finest young and emerging holding midfielders in the league. He is young and has proven himself over the last couple of seasons. A tough tackler with a calm head on his shoulders and the ability to play in different positions, he sounds like a great all-round deal.
The signing of Rice could serve a two-fold reason. Firstly, it offers them a long-term prospect in midfield. Henderson and Wijnaldum are both 30 and Wijnaldum’s future is rather uncertain given his contract is up soon.
New signing Thiago has suffered a lot of injuries and the same applies to Oxlade-Chamberlain. Naby Keita is yet to impress in a red shirt. Rice’s addition adds some fresh legs as well as competition for the current crop of central players.
Secondly, it’s Rice’s ability to play at centre-back. The Englishman started out his career as a central defender at West Ham and gradually switched to a midfield role. This would surely appeal to Liverpool, who can use more players to chip in at central defence. Overall, Rice looks like a very good player for the Reds to solve quite a few of their issues.