Gerrard calls Rice 'world class' as he shuts down Keown's Souness dig
Steven Gerrard was not interested in adding fuel to a row between Martin Keown and Graeme Souness over Declan Rice's quality as a midfielder, instead using the opportunity to deliver a firm endorsement of the England international after Arsenal's 2-2 draw at Bayern Munich.
Goals from Eberechi Eze and Rice secured a point for Arsenal in the Champions League, with Gerrard praising the character shown by Mikel Arteta's side after they fell behind in Munich. Speaking to TNT Sports, Gerrard said he felt it was a missed opportunity for Arsenal given the circumstances.
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“I did look at this game and think it was a wonderful opportunity for Arsenal to show why they're Premier League champions and to go and win this game,” Gerrard said. “Bayern were missing six or seven starters and the manager has been ill this week but credit to them because they played like men.”
“I think Arsenal would have really fancied this game and might have been rubbing their hands together in the dressing room, but Bayern stood up, played some wonderful football. It would have been really unfair if Bayern had lost that, but then at the end it was Arsenal who needed to respond and they didn't feel sorry for themselves. They've come here in a tough environment and gone 2-1 behind but they stood up, found the solution and showed real character and mentality.”
Keown tries to draw Gerrard into Souness row
The conversation took a different turn when Keown attempted to pull Gerrard into his ongoing disagreement with Souness, who had claimed on Piers Morgan's Uncensored that Rice plays “old man's football” and is “cheating” by dropping between the centre backs.
“What about this nonsense about him not being a top midfield player,” Keown asked Gerrard, referencing Souness' comments.
Gerrard, visibly unimpressed by the line of questioning, batted it away immediately. “Oh forget about that, Martin,” he said. “You're thinking about things that are going on in your life away from here. Declan Rice is a world class midfielder and that was a top, top goal. But you don't have to prove that because of all the other stuff that's going on on all the other shows.”
Keown's own defence of Rice
Keown had already made his feelings on the Souness comments clear following Arsenal's 2-1 Premier League win over Leeds, in which Rice played a part in Bruno Guimaraes' winning goal.
“Shoutout to Declan Rice,” Keown said at the time. “We have got Graeme Souness saying that he is not a midfield player, he is a number ten, isn't he? Look at that flick! I think we underestimate how good some of these English players are. It is limitless for him, how he has improved.”
Rice's performance in Munich, including his goal, continues to generate debate among pundits, but Gerrard's intervention made clear he sees no argument to be had over the midfielder's quality regardless of what is being said elsewhere.
