West Ham’s Declan Rice has been lauded for his performances so far in the Premier League. On Saturday he will have to stop another rising star, Leicester’s James Maddison.
Declan Rice has been in the papers for many reasons so far this season, but thankfully some of them are for his good performances on the pitch for West Ham. The youngster has adapted well to the new defensive midfield role under Pellegrini and is earning the spotlight. His positioning and game intelligence is noted constantly throughout the game by pundits. He’s helped keep Hazard and Pogba quiet so far this season, and looked good against Spurs.
But with Leicester coming to town there’s another rising star causing trouble. James Maddison was said to have been a West Ham target earlier this year, and how I wish we had got him. The 21 year old has 3 goals and 2 assists so far, and looks a great attacking midfielder. With Vardy and Iheanacho ahead of him, he has caused chaos in between the opponents attack and defence.
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No.6 vs No.10
Both of these youngsters occupy quite traditional positions on the football pitch. Maddison is the classic No.10, playing in front of the midfield, supplying the wingers and supporting the strikers. Rice sits in front of his defence, acting as a shield against onrushing attacks. In Saturday’s match they will be in direct opposition to each other, and it should be good to watch.
One of the hallmarks of Maddison’s play so far has been his willingness to try something new to get some space. He has quick feet but a quicker mind, and will play around with letting the ball run across him or turning back against the defender. And why not? He’s very good at both.
Rice will have to be careful not to get too tight and allow space in behind, whilst also not giving the English midfielder room to find a killer pass. It’s one of those games where everything he does will come under inspection, and one mistake could lead to a Leicester goal. But I have faith that Rice will keep him quiet for a lot of the match.
The one issue we could have is the fact that Maddison is potentially most dangerous when his teammates are around the box, and he doesn’t have the ball. If the Hammers commit any fouls around the box Maddison will be looking to punish with that gorgeous freekick technique of his, and we really don’t want to be running that risk. But with pacey players in the Leicester side, not fouling anyone could be tough.
It’s a matchup that we could be seeing for years to come in the Premier League, but Rice vs Maddison is going to be a key battle on Saturday. If Rice keeps Maddison quiet, the Hammers will dominate possession and will find defending easier. If Maddison starts to pull the strings, it could be very messy for West Ham.