Declan Rice on 'average' World Cup, managing minutes and Graeme Souness criticism: 'Football's way different now'

Rice defends his modern midfield style against Souness criticism, revealing he's still building fitness after a demanding World Cup hampered by hamstring issues.

Declan Rice has responded to Graeme Souness's recent criticism of his playing style, insisting the modern game demands a completely different approach to football than in Souness's era. Rice acknowledged he had an "average" World Cup, hampered by constant hamstring pain that radiated into his lower back following a gruelling 69-game season for Arsenal and England.

The Arsenal midfielder defended his positioning and movement as tactical necessities in contemporary football, citing examples like Harry Kane dropping deep to create overloads. "It's what the game demands, to get away from your man, to get away from who's marking you, to go into different areas to create overloads," Rice explained.

He pointed to his Arsenal statistics—15 goals and 25 assists in 129 Premier League appearances—as evidence of his effectiveness.

Rice revealed he missed England's last camp on the advice of Thomas Tuchel to recover properly, admitting he "did not feel right at all" after Arsenal's defeat to Brighton. He is now building back to full fitness and acknowledged the challenge modern elite players face in balancing constant competition with peak performance, averaging 64 games a season over five years.