Analysis of Declan Rice’s rocky road on his journey to stardom at Arsenal

The more you hear the farewells to Declan Rice from West Ham fans, the more you learn the strength of personality entering our dressing room.

Yes, we know he’s one of the best in the division in his position.

No, he never forgot his roots, genuinely proud to be only the third Hammer’s captain to lift a major trophy.

In an England shirt, he’s been one of the first names on a team sheet, in a side who got to the Final of a Euros and a World Cup Semi Final. Far surpassing a so-called Golden Generation.

Yet listen to the midfielder’s story and you realise he’s a unique character with a strong mentality.

It’s his mindset which made so many Iron supporters fall in love with him.

As much as Arteta and Edu have wooed the 24-year-old since January and sold him on their vision, the player would have impressed his new employers by simply recounting his journey as a professional.

Our manager often talks about ‘non-negotiable principles’ and therefore you can see why he would be impressed when they met.

Rice’s level of ambition is what made him so popular at the London Stadium, focused on winning UEFA’s third tier competition even when David Sullivan had said he was 99 percent convinced his skipper was leaving.

The irony being that same ambition which inspired a first piece of silverware in 40 years was what would lead to him outgrowing the East End of London.

If you have a single mindset to play at the highest level, that won’t be happening at the London Stadium no matter his love for the club.

You could argue it might not happen at the Emirates, now two decades without a League title.

As a Gooner who feels that won’t change under the Kroenke regime, the fact that a player with Rice’s vision believes we are a place where he can fulfil his dreams reassures me.

Rice pictures himself competing for the sport’s biggest honours.
Believing it’s your destiny to lift Prems and Champions Leagues could lead some individuals to be labelled arrogant.

That’s why this tale is a romantic one.

It is not a reflection on ego but a testament to his heart.

Rice’s convictions don’t come from being technically gifted as a child or told constantly how skilful he was. It came from his own drive and will power, a refusal to consider no as an option.

Ironically, like another West Ham legend Frank Lampard, Rice had to battle concerns regarding his body type at Chelsea since the age of 8.

He recounted: “I think it was probably down to the fact that as a kid, I was tiny, I was going through a massive growth spurt at the time.

“My body wasn’t all connected together, my running pattern was really weird. My technical ability was fine, in terms of the physical aspect of it, the running, I was struggling, I couldn’t keep up with other kids’.

Like Lampard he tried to make up for his shortcomings by his work ethic in training, ensuring that not one of his peers would work harder than him.

At 14, the teenager was given news that would stop other kids dreams.

Chelsea essentially told Rice that they didn’t think he was good enough, that he was chasing illusions and would never catch the prize he was after.

Since the age of 8, Rice and his best friend Mason Mount were part of Chelsea’s academy.

For 6 years the two mates grew up believing that was their pathway.

Despite being heartbroken, on the very same day he was released by the club he set his heart on playing for, Rice got in his father’s car and that evening went to trial for Fulham. The next day he auditioned at West Ham.

He continued: ‘I felt like that was it, I was gutted, I remember my dad coming home and telling me that was it.

“That night I got released, I went and trained with Fulham on Wednesday and then on Thursday I was with West Ham. My dad drove me to Chadwell Heath, and I was gutted but I needed to kick on and push again.”

It’s a credit to his parents and his own desire that he still got in that car when others would have laid under a blanket feeling sorry for themselves.

I think of the excuses made for Gunners promoted from Hale End. How some claim a Maitland Niles, Reiss Nelson and Eddie Nketiah still haven’t had fair opportunities.

Compare that to Rice who the moment Chelsea washed their hands of him, was pushing against the wind.

He didn’t make excuses or blame others. He treated the stage given to him at Fulham and West Ham like it was his last dance.

To this day, Rice is clearly hurt by Chelsea who he maintains never bothered to give him a proper explanation.

He stressed they knew medically he was going through a growth spurt ,putting him at a disadvantage in one of the clubs best ever classes. His versatility also meant it was hard to impress in one position at a time when Chelsea were in the Roman Abramovich era.

In Rice’s time in their system, it wasn’t really Chelsea’s policy to create a pathway from the youth team to the first team.

There was always a belief that Rice would end up back at the Bridge given his bromance with Mount and a desire to remain living In the Capital of England.

When his buddy won the Champions League, he face timed to show off the kind of medal Rice could be winning if he came ‘ home ‘.

On international duty he is surrounded by peers who play in the big matches with huge stakes.

Rice wants to be in that conversation.

There’s an irony that the two boys who grew up dreaming of playing for Chelsea now in their twenties have put a line under that chapter in their lives.

Rice is too close to Mount to ever be in his shadow but there’s naturally a competitive rivalry.

In 2013, Mount was judged by one of the biggest clubs in the world to be superior to Rice.

Yet it’s Rice who has convinced Arsenal to pay for him more than anyone else in their history.

If you said to him on that day when he was released at Chelsea, as he drove to Fulham with a tear in his eye, if you said his first transfer fee would be the most ever paid for a British player, no one would have believed you.

………..Or maybe Rice would have?

Dan