{"id":298697,"date":"2023-12-08T10:24:50","date_gmt":"2023-12-08T10:24:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportslifetale.com\/?p=298697"},"modified":"2023-12-08T10:24:50","modified_gmt":"2023-12-08T10:24:50","slug":"odegaard-warned-as-rice-tipped-to-become-arsenals-own-van-dijk","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportslifetale.com\/soccer\/odegaard-warned-as-rice-tipped-to-become-arsenals-own-van-dijk\/","title":{"rendered":"Odegaard warned as Rice tipped to become Arsenal’s own Van Dijk"},"content":{"rendered":"

Declan Rice opens up on Arsenal move<\/h3>\n

Jamie Carragher believes it is an inevitability that Declan Rice succeeds Martin Odegaard as Arsenal’s captain and become for the Gunners what Virgil van Dijk has been for Liverpool. The 24-year-old has somehow made his \u00a3105million price tag look like a bargain this season.<\/p>\n

Whether it’s propping up to score a last-gasp winner away at Luton or dominating the midfield, as he has done in pretty much every game this season, it is clear to see just how important the 24-year-old is to Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal.<\/p>\n

When he was forced off against fierce rivals Tottenham earlier this season the Gunners looked like a completely different side. He is the glue of the team and is quickly becoming one of their most influential players both on and off the pitch.<\/p>\n

It is therefore a no-brainer in Carragher’s eyes for Rice to take the armband from Odegaard, who was made Arsenal’s skipper at the start of last season after the departure of Alexander Lacazette to Lyon. “As was always the case with Steven Gerrard at Liverpool, it feels inevitable that Rice will one day captain Arsenal. With Gerrard, all the players in the Liverpool squad knew that his time would come,” wrote Carragher in his Daily Telegraph column.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

“I expect it is the same at Arsenal, and probably with England \u2014 although he may be in a battle with Bellingham to one day replace Kane as captain. For Arsenal, the move for Rice was a no-brainer.<\/p>\n

“I believe we will be talking about him as an Arsenal great in seven or eight years, and that his \u00a3105 million fee will look like a snip. Ultimately, he could be for Arsenal what Virgil van Dijk has been for Liverpool.<\/p>\n

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