Ferdinand heaps praises on Arsenal star, compares his achievement to Bellingham

Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand believes Declan Rice’s performances at Arsenal deserve the same recognition as Jude Bellingham has received in his first season at Real Madrid.

Arsenal spent around £100million to sign Rice from West Ham United last summer while Jude Bellingham joined Real Madrid in the summer for £88m.

Though Real Madrid have won the La Liga title and are one win away from reaching the Champions League final, Arsenal are also leading the Premier League table.

Ferdinand has now shared his thoughts on Declan Rice and how he has helped Arsenal all through the season.

LONDON, ENGLAND – MAY 4: Declan Rice of Arsenal smiling after he had scored the third goal during the Premier League match between Arsenal FC and AFC Bournemouth at Emirates Stadium on May 4, 2024 in London, England.(Photo by Mark Leech/Offside/Offside via Getty Images)

Speaking on his FIVE YouTube channel, Ferdinand says Rice has shaken off any qualms about his transfer fee to quickly become “a real integral part of that squad”.

“It’s a huge amount of pressure to go with that (price-tag), and then to go and perform the way he has and he needed to go in there and kind of the way he plays, chest out, give me the ball, dominant figure, and again, we talked about Jude Bellingham buying into Real Madrid and then the players and the fans buying into him, on a lesser scale probably but they have done the same thing to Declan,” he said.

“The fans loved him immediately, the players you can see really have warmed to him as well and he is a real integral part of that squad.”

Declan Rice will be eager to end the season on a high as Arsenal compete with Manchester City and Liverpool for the Premier League title.