West Ham assistant coach Stuart Pearce has compared Declan Rice to former Manchester United legends Roy Keane and Bryan Robson and says the Hammers star can go right to the top of the game.
This season, Rice has continued his improvement as an all-round midfield player, and week in week out the on-field captain is continuing to lead the way with West Ham top of their Europa League Group, fourth in the Premier League and in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals.
One major difference to his game is he has added the attacking output manager David Moyes has demanded of him. Rice has four goals and three assists for club and country this season and this has led Pearce to compare him favourably to Keane and Robson.
"[Rice can go] as far as he wants," Pearce told talkSPORT.
"Every game he takes the field the expectation from me [is that] he needs to be the best player on the pitch, in every game. He's got the tools to do that, the stature to do it. He's got everything. He is an absolute pleasure to work with at this place. He drives us in midfield.
"I was sat next to [West Ham coach] Billy McKinlay at the weekend and he said to me: 'Is he as good as Roy Keane at the same age?' I said I think he is probably slightly better.
"We had Roy at Forest with us before he moved on to Manchester United and I'd have to say he is slightly better than Roy. Whether he'll have the career that Roy had... it is all there for him though. He's got to stay fit, keep learning and progressing.
"This season we're fortunate that he's added a couple of goals to his game which I always thought he had the ability to do so. He drives past people, he breaks things up, he’s just an all-round midfielder. He’s probably a Bryan Robson of yesteryear."
