Former Ireland footballer Kevin Kilbane has hailed Declan Rice for his performance for West Ham during the weekend despite the fact that the Hammers were thrashed 4-0 during the game by Manchester United.
The teenager was sent on for the final 30 minutes of the game and was arguably one of the better performers for his team. He managed a pass success rate of 96%, made two interceptions and did not give the ball away after replacing the clubs out of form captain Mark Noble.
The performance of the youngster will surely warrant him more opportunities as time passes. Kilbane noticed Rice’s potential and said, “We don’t want to go over the top, do we, because we’ve seen so many players over the years who have come and been around the Irish international setup and it hasn’t quite worked for them.
“But the one thing he [Rice] did when he came on – “give me the ball” – it was only his second Premier League game and he only made his debut last season.
“They wanted to give him the ball. They had full confidence in him. This kid coming into the game was prepared to take the ball in tight areas, when he’s got people up behind him and right up against him tightly marking him – he was prepared to have a huge influence.”
