I've figured out one reason I'm going to appreciate Declan Rice a great deal.
Granit Xhaka was a passionate footballer with gifts: a superb left foot, charisma, even a modicum of intelligence. However, Xhaka was a below average, high risk tackler, which with his positioning issues and mediocre foot speed meant he had to be shifted from any deeper role. Add to that his rash streak, and there was a lot of liability in him.
Declan Rice is gonna be our "anti-Xhaka". Forget Xhaka's main character energy. Rice will be a "glue guy", a durable player with solid skills across the board, with the ability, intelligence and natural inclination to flexibly cover tasks otherwise neglected as a match evolves. Rice's "successful action" percentages (as opposed to cumulative numbers) are eye-catching because he's prudent and reliably makes correct decisions.
If I ponder any match where Xhaka pissed me off ... his altercation with Alexander-Arnold at Anfield for example, I can imagine Rice on the field in his place: judiciously shutting down those passes, keeping his head down, recycling the ball, protecting the lead.
Until yesterday's match I hadn't really grasped how different Rice is to the man he intends to supplant as an informal leader in the dressing room. We've been confusing the two a bit but they're in even starker contrast than we thought. And it's great.
