Michael Owen says Arsenal player can walk into any team

He will be an important player.

“I don’t care who you are, to feel settled in your new surroundings and to have that price tag around your neck, it just makes it feel so much better when you score a big goal,” said Michael Owen about Declan Rice.

“When the crowd sing your name. When you feel part of it. He is a great character. He would walk into any dressing room and be part of it straight away.

“But it just cements that relationship. You just, all of a sudden, feel ‘right I have contributed’. He had a good solid game. He will be an important player.

“It’s an area of the pitch for many, many years, since the Vieira and the Petit’s, they used to dominate every team in that area.

It has been quite weak over a long period of time, but now it looks like a real powerhouse of a position for them.”

Rice has hit the ground immediately at Arsenal, winning two Man of the Match awards in four games. He is currently with the English national team.