I've not been keen for Partey at RB, Gabriel on the bench to become our default approach, but just since yesterday I have tempered and embraced an additional perspective. Rice basically gets to first-hand spectate and absorb the ways in which Partey floats in and progresses play and moulds attacking shapes. It's like a set of training wheels, though thats a bit of a demeaning way to put it. I commented after Nottingham Forest though that the structural shift between Rice, Partey and Havertz is intriguing. Where Partey can come in and dictate, Rice then slides wide and more advanced, even to overlap Martinelli, and Havertz can push up to the oppositions back line, play off the CF, make furthest forward runs, or even hold back a bit as Rice adds himself to an attack.
Overall though, I think Rice is spoilt here with how much he can learn from Partey, Zinchenko and Jorginho about deeper-lying ways of playing on the ball here. Hopefully by next season, he should be set in a way that unlocks more opportunities for different formations/lineups in this team.
