Declan Rice is not the type to rest on his laurels.
Instead, the 25-year-old appears to be in a constant state of evolution, adding an extra dimension or two to his game with each passing season. At West Ham, he morphed from defensive disruptor to progressive playmaker to dribbling driving force, all the while emerging as a talismanic figure and a natural leader.
Now at Arsenal, he is scoring and setting up goals at an unprecedented rate. He would never admit it, such is his desire to continually improve and expand his skillset, but Rice is as close to being a complete midfielder as it gets. There’s a reason Arsenal paid £105m for him.
Rice started to step up his attacking output in his final campaign at West Ham but his numbers have improved further since swapping a claret and blue shirt for a red one.
He has nine direct goal contributions in the Premier League in 2023-24, three more than his highest total for West Ham, matching his previous best for goals with four and breaking his assist record with five. It’s an area that Rice wants to continue to master.
“At the back end of my West Ham career I was starting to score more goals and it really did give me a hunger to score more,” Rice told i at the London Football Awards where he was crowned the Premier League Player of the Year for the second time in three years.
“It never really used to mean that much to me. I was a holding midfielder and wanted to do my job and help the team but as I’ve started to score goals and get assists I’ve been really happy with it.
“It’s exciting and [is] making me want to do more and put targets out there to try and hit. I want to try and end the season strongly.
“I’ve got a target in my head of what I want to get goals and assists-wise [this season] and I’m really enjoying it.”
He has contributed crucial goals too, including added-time winners against Manchester United in September and Luton Town in December and the equaliser in a 2-2 draw with Chelsea in October. His most recent strike, the sixth in a 6-0 win against his former club, was much less significant but the most picturesque so far, a sweeping first-time effort from range that nestled satisfyingly in the side netting.
“As soon as it left my boot I knew it was going in,” Rice says, before admitting “it was a bittersweet feeling to score in that game.”
If the goal was Beckham-esque in execution so too were Rice’s pair of assists that day, both of which were whipped into the penalty area at pace from dead balls; a free-kick followed by a corner. Set pieces are also now part of Rice’s repertoire.
Rice has become a more frequent taker in recent months but revealed that conversations with Mikel Arteta and his coaching staff about set plays began at the start of the season.
“I feel like they wanted to try and change it up and obviously it has worked and long may it continue,” Rice says. “I’m really happy being on them, I’m confident every time I step up to the ball and I’ve also got a really good feeling about getting assists and goals so I want to keep that going.”
The Gunners have already scored 18 set-piece goals this season, up from 15 in 2022-23. Their total after 26 games is one better than Liverpool, last season’s most prolific scorers from them, managed.
Arsenal’s prowess from corners and free-kicks has succeeded in turning Nicolas Jover into an overnight phenomenon and the most renowned expert in his field. How many other set-piece coaches have their own Wikipedia page?
“Behind the scenes, he’s just so hard-working. Nobody sees that they just see him on the sideline celebrating set-pieces!” Rice says.
“But he’s always got his laptop in his hand, always working, always striving to be better, always pulling lads for individual meetings to say ‘you’re not doing this right’ or ‘you can improve that’. I think that’s good, it means we’re not going stale.
“We’re constantly improving, constantly taking criticism if we need it. He’s been really good to work with and is open to new ideas and I’m really relishing that.”
The deal that took Rice from east to north London made him the most expensive footballer in English football history but with Arsenal in the thick of the title race and Rice integral to their hopes of pipping Liverpool and Manchester City to the crown, that nine-figure investment already looks like a sound one.
Countless players have struggled under the weight of expectation after joining clubs for exorbitant transfer fees but Rice has taken it all in his stride.
“I didn’t want to change anything or feel like I had to be different because I had a price tag on my head,” Rice says.
“Ultimately I’ve just tried to be myself and do what I’ve always done which is be confident and play the game like I know how to do best.”