During the last eight years, Real Madrid has gone through some short periods of crisis. During those tough times, a lot of questions were asked about some of Real Madrid’s starting players, and the club had to make new signings to solve the issues. But if there’s any department that didn’t require any sort of tinkering, it’s the midfield.
The club did sign a lot of midfielders during these eight years, but none of them has been able to disturb the legendary trio of Toni Kroos, Casemiro, and Luka Modric. But now we are reaching a time where we have to plan for the future and need to find able long-term replacements for each of them. The club has signed some young central midfielders in recent years, but haven’t signed a proper backup for Casemiro yet.
Reliable sources have reported in January that the club is already planning for the future of the No. 6 role, and is looking to sign AS Monaco’s Aurelien Tchouameni this summer.
But it seems like the club is planning to have a look at another option, with Gianluca Di Marzio mentioning in a talk with Wettfreunde that Real Madrid’s manager Carlo Ancelotti is a huge fan of West Ham United’s midfielder, Declan Rice, and might ask for the Englishman this summer. The reliable Italian journalist has also mentioned that Real’s stance isn’t clear at the moment, but this is a good lead.
Declan Rice is a highly talented midfielder and is among the best mids in England
Declan Rice is just 23 years old, but he has already established himself as one of the best defensive midfielders in the Premier League. He is an incredible ball-winner and can win the ball high up the field, which helps his team create a lot of dangerous chances in attack.
He is also an excellent ball carrier who’s blessed with the skill to run towards the opponents with pace and strength. And his excellent press resistance combined with his strong physique just makes him an even better ball carrier.
According to FBRef, Rice is in the 98th percentile for interceptions and is in the 96th percentile for most progressive distance and carries into the final third, when compared to all other midfielders in Europe. These numbers just reiterate the fact that ball-winning and ball-carrying are Rice’s main strengths.
Every young player has some weaknesses or the other, and Rice isn’t any exception. Maybe the word weakness might be a harsh word, and we can rather say that Rice needs to work on his passing. The Englishman isn’t a bad passer by any means, but he can be more adventurous with the ball at his feet, and develop a better passing range.
But Rice might not be the better-suited option when compared to Tchouameni
As I’ve mentioned above, Rice is a highly talented midfielder. But there are certain factors that make me feel that Rice might not be the best available option for Real Madrid. The first one is the fact that Rice is used to a double pivot alongside Tomas Soucek at West Ham, and hasn’t yet proved himself as a lone pivot.
And secondly, Rice will have a minimum price tag of 100 million pounds, with the emphasis being on the word ‘minimum’ here. Manchester United and Chelsea have been in the race to sign Declan Rice for a long, and the competition and Rice’s growing reputation might eventually lead to West Ham asking for even more.
When Real Madrid have a cheaper option in Aurelien Tchouameni, a player whose profile is more suited to Real Madrid’s system, I think there shouldn’t be any more debate regarding who’s the better option.
Another thing we shouldn’t forget is that Declan Rice is an English player, and history suggests that not a lot of British players leave their homeland. And even when they have accepted the challenge, they might find it difficult to adapt to life outside England.