WHZ View: Declan Rice should become West Ham’s new club captain
It’s seemed for so long now that the only ones aware of Declan Rice’s abilities are West Ham fans.
At the age of just 22, he’s now played his 119th Premier League match and has this season led the Hammers to fourth in the table.
Some still doubt his enormous potential.
Rice is so often linked with the move back to his former club, Chelsea. These rumours have seemingly diminished with the exit of Frank Lampard (what a shame).
The next move for West Ham must be to announce the inevitable, Rice as the official club captain.
Yes, this would sadly bring an end to Mark Noble’s run since taking over from Kevin Nolan in September of 2015. But if the last week is anything to go by, the time to change is upon us.
This season
It’s been an incredible campaign for us so far as we continue to fly up the table. David Moyes and his squad are a force to be reckoned with, all whilst Rice holds the armband.
Noble captained the side to a fantastic 4-0 victory over Doncaster Rovers in the FA Cup last weekend. It was just the fourth time this season that he’s played a full 90 minutes.
After the game, Nobes admitted that he has to enjoy it whilst he can, as there’s only a certain number of games he has left playing for the Irons.
Of the Hammers 20 Premier League fixtures this season, Rice has appeared in each of them and Noble just ten. Our current club captain has completed 90 minutes just once, playing 280 overall.
Rice has featured in every minute (1,931) of every game [Wyscout]. The only outfielder to have more minutes in the entire division is Harry Maguire.
In this time, Rice has maintained immaculate standards. He’s averaged 89.5% passing accuracy, 4.85 interceptions, and 7.41 recoveries per game.
Rice’s form has been so good that he’s now a regular starting in the national team.
He’s completed a full 90 minutes in eleven of his thirteen England caps, and has even scored for his country.
Gareth Southgate understandably sees him as a key component in Englands European Championship plans.
Changing of the guard
Noble has been a fantastic servant to the club, and rightfully so will be a legend at West Ham long after he retires.
He understands how irreplaceable Rice is to the squad. After all, he’s the one who’s been mentoring him this season.
Now would be a good time to make this announcement, seeing as the threat of Rice crossing back to West-London looks to have passed. It’s important we do this before the next club inevitably comes in for him.
Rice has said on many occasions how much he loves West Ham, and has taken to leading the side like a duck to water. He possesses natural leadership skills and plays with maturity beyond his years.
He’s the future of this club, it’s time we made him the main man.
In other West Ham news, here are three things we learned as the Hammers beat Crystal Palace 3-2.