One pundit has offered a firm answer on the midfield debate surrounding Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard versus Arsenal maestro Declan Rice.
While Liverpool fans now have modern heroes to latch onto, in the form of Mohamed Salah and Virgil Van Dijk, Steven Gerrard’s legacy at Anfield is still very much felt to this day.
Indeed, Gerrard would go on to make a staggering 710 appearances for his boyhood employers, and while it wasn’t always decorated with trophies, he did at least lift the Champions League proudly in 2005 on that famous night in Istanbul, amid his earth-shuddering 186 goals and 156 assists for the club.
To the neutral eye in the Premier League, Gerrard is also renowned as one of the best midfielders to have ever graced the elite division, with Ballon d’Or winner Kaka even labelling him as possessing the “heart of a lion” in 2010.
Yet, while Gerrard has a permanent place in the Anfield hall-of-fame, there are modern-day midfielders who are attempting to give him a run for his money, with Declan Rice sticking out as a top performer for title-chasing Arsenal this season, as another central anchor who can control games.
Rice’s Premier League stats – 25/26:
| Category | Stat |
| Matches played | 26 |
| Minutes played | 2239 mins |
| Goals | 4 |
| Assists | 4 |
| Passing accuracy | 88.6% |
| Chances created | 51 |
| Duels won | 95 (59% success rate) |
| Tackles | 48 |
| Interceptions | 28 |
| Recoveries | 134 |
| Yellow Cards | 2 |
As is clear from the table above, Rice is very much taking on the role of being a well-rounded general – like Gerrard in his prime – for the Gunners this season, with little to no faults to pick up from his varied game.
He will hope, though, that he can achieve what the revered Englishman never did, and lift the Premier League title for Mikel Arteta’s men.
Still, even as Rice sticks out as a new breed of midfielder taking the top-flight by storm, pundit Jamie Lawrence reckons Gerrard has the beating of the Arsenal number 41 when speaking on his ‘The Game Has Gone’ podcast.
Why Gerrard edges the debate
Speaking via Instagram reels, the former Bradford City winger has chimed in with his thoughts on the debate, as Rice attempts to solidify himself as a top-flight great.
Lawrence does acknowledge that he’s been “on record” to say that he likes what he’s seen from Arteta’s main man, by stating that he is an “old school midfielder” of the Gerrard mould.
But, Lawrence further goes on to justify why Gerrard is in a league of his own in this debate, by stating – “We are talking about one of the best midfielders to ever grace the Premier League, if not the best.
He used to win games on his own, he could do everything – pass, tackle, score goals, head, run with the ball, he could do the full sha-bang.
He would drag the team through and win games on his own, big moments in big games, Stevie G, was your man.”
This is an argument that is hard to go against, with Gerrard popping up with some priceless goals throughout his long-lasting Anfield stay, including this peach of a strike that saw the Reds progress through to the knockout rounds of the Champions League in 2004.
Also scoring in Champions League finals and FA Cup finals, to name some more memorable moments, he really was a hero Liverpool could depend on in clutch moments, with this unbelievable knack allowing him to edge the Gerrard vs Rice debate, as Rice has some catching up to do to be held in the same light at the Emirates.
