Emmanuel Petit knows all about world-class midfielder players. Not only is the former Arsenal man a World Cup winner, but the Frenchman also played alongside Patrick Vieira for club and country.
Looking at the current Arsenal team, Petit has singled out Declan Rice's importance to the Gunners in the middle of the park and told BetVictor how vital he'll be again this season.
However, Petit believes the England man is still behind the Premier League's most outstanding midfielder player, and has claimed that Manchester City's Rodri is still on a different level to Arsenal's record signing.
“Declan Rice will be very important for Arsenal this season,” he said.
“He is one of the best midfielders in the world, but he is not on the same level as Rodri. We saw it during the Euros, Rodri is on another level. I think he should be in serious competition for the Ballon d’Or. I’m a huge fan of his. Every time Manchester City are without him, they struggle. I don’t know how many games he has actually lost playing for City, but it certainly isn’t many.
“The main difference between him and Rice is his winning experience. He has won it all. I’m still a huge fan of Rice, though. For me he’s the main man at Arsenal and I think he should be the captain because he’s a natural leader.”
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