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Joe Cole has said that Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice is starting to remind him of Didier Drogba at Chelsea, given his importance to Mikel Arteta’s team.
Drogba was one of the most feared players in the Premier League and became one of the most crucial players at Chelsea during the mid-2000s to mid-2010s.
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Cole has now been discussing Rice and has compared him to the legendary Ivorian striker due to how key he is to the Gunners’ system.
Simply, there is nobody at Arsenal, or perhaps even in Europe, who can do what Rice can, and that is what makes him so special, according to Cole.
Joe Cole compares Decelan Rice to Didier Drogba
Joe Cole claims that Decelan Rice is in a similar position to Didier Drogba at Chelsea, where Arsenal could not cope without him.
The former Chelsea winger recalls how the Blues had to be really careful with the striker as they had no like-for-like replacement, just like the Gunners with Rice.
Speaking to The Dressing Room Podcast: “I just think, I just think when you take certain players, like Declan didn’t play at the weekend, you know, I just think he’s so influential for what they do.
“Like any great team with a great system, and you could have 20 players all over, but there’s always one or two or three players scattered within that that are just the soul of the team, and I think Declan Rice is one of them.
“Do you know what I mean? At Chelsea, we were blessed with quality. Like centre-halves, we had Gallas, Terry, and Carvalho.
“So if one of them was injured, you know, you didn’t really miss the other one that much, although they were all fit.
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“The one player I thought with us that we couldn’t quite replace because he was so unique was Drogba, because he was so unique. Like, I remember when we had to play, it was Drogba or Eidur.
“So we had to make a conscious effort to change the way that we played. Do you know what I mean? There was no like-for-like.
“I think at Arsenal, with Declan, there’s no like-for-like in the midfield where he could, because he does so much good work where he gets it deep and he drives through the lines and he breaks the play.”
Rice has started to look a little leggy over recent weeks, which is likely due to the fact that Arsenal have had to run him into the ground.
As Cole points out, the North London club do not have a proper replacement for the 26-year-old, and without him, they are so much worse.
Rice has been carrying a knock since before the Carabao Cup final, which Arteta will need to keep monitoring closely ahead of a busy end to the season.
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