Alan Shearer believes Declan Rice is a manager’s dream, consistently available and regularly putting in top performances for Arsenal.
Declan Rice made his 27th appearance of the season for Arsenal on Saturday, and his two goals against Bournemouth brought him to 10 direct goal contributions for the campaign from midfield.
They turned out to be important goals, as Arsenal only ended up winning with a one-goal margin in a 3-2 result. The three points put the Gunners six points clear at the top of the Premier League table, albeit with Manchester City having a game in hand to potentially cut it to four.
As significant as Rice’s goal contributions were, the 26-year-old offers a lot more than just that. His work out of possession is pretty much second to none, and he carries the ball up the field expertly.
Speaking about Rice on BBC’s Match of the Day show, former Newcastle United striker Alan Shearer has plenty of praise for the England international.
“He’s a manager’s dream,” Shearer said. “He’s a manager’s dream, he really is. I mean his attitude is amazing.
“He very rarely misses games. And when he’s out there, he’s a regular 8/10. He’s been incredible.”
There had actually been an injury doubt around Rice ahead of the Bournemouth game, after he’d picked up a swollen knee last week against Brighton. He’d missed the Aston Villa game in between.
Yet Shearer is still correct to suggest that Rice is rarely out of action. The missed game against Villa was only the second time all season that Rice hadn’t featured in an Arsenal match, with the first being a Champions League game against Club Brugge.
Rice only missed three matches through injury in 2024/25, and only one match in 2023/24. That’s a grand total of six games in all competitions two-and-a-half seasons, a figure most Arsenal players rack up every single year.
When he’s available, as he so often is, you know exactly what you’re getting with Rice. Saturday was no exception.