Graeme Souness slams Declan Rice and claims Arsenal star is ‘cheating’ in midfield

Graeme Souness has launched a remarkable attack on Declan Rice despite the midfielder playing a major role in Arsenal’s Premier League title-winning campaign.

Rice was named Arsenal’s Player of the Season for the second consecutive year after another outstanding campaign under Mikel Arteta, but Souness remains unconvinced by aspects of his game.

The former Liverpool midfielder believes Rice spends too much time dropping into Arsenal’s defensive line and has even questioned whether the England international should actually be considered a centre-back.

Souness’ main criticism centres around Rice’s positioning during Arsenal’s build-up.

“How many times do you see him as the last man with the ball?” Souness told Piers Morgan on Football Uncensored.

“He’s sitting between two centre-halves or between the centre-half and the full-back. He’s last man. A lot of the time, he doesn’t play in midfield.”

Souness went considerably further when describing the practice of midfielders dropping deep to receive possession.

“It’s old man’s football. It’s cheating. An old man’s way of playing midfield. You get the ball under no pressure and you play it out to the full-back.”

Despite that criticism, Souness acknowledged Rice’s defensive qualities, describing him as the best defensive midfielder in the country and praising his ability to recognise danger.

However, he believes Rice still falls short of being a complete midfielder.

Rice has been central to Arsenal’s transformation since completing his £105million move from West Ham.

His performances helped Arsenal progress from title challengers to Premier League champions, while his consistency resulted in another club Player of the Season award.

Souness, though, does not believe that necessarily puts him alongside the best midfielders in Europe.

“I’m not sure if he gets in Barcelona, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Man City team,” he said.

The former Liverpool captain pointed towards Rodri and Fernandinho as examples of defensive midfielders who operated more consistently in midfield rather than dropping into the defensive line.

Souness even suggested Rice could ultimately be better suited to centre-back.

“He’s not a midfield player then, is he? I think he may be a centre-half,” he added.

It is a striking assessment of a player who has become one of Arsenal’s most important figures and was considered among the leading contenders for last season’s PFA Player of the Year award.

Rice remains one of the first names on Arteta’s teamsheet, meaning Souness’ comments are unlikely to change his role at Arsenal.

The debate instead centres on how Rice should be judged. His ability to protect the defence and influence different phases of Arsenal’s game has made him invaluable to Arteta, while Souness believes those deeper positions highlight limitations rather than versatility.