The England national team have received plenty of criticism from fans following the 2-1 loss at the hands of Czech Republic.
Declan Rice was one of those who got the most, with various fans already writing off the 20-year-old, saying that he is overrated, overpriced and shouldn’t be near the England team.
However, many West Ham fans have come to the defence of their midfielder:
Rice has already reached 78 appearances for West Ham, as per Transfermarkt, which is an impressive figure when it is considered that he is still only 20-years-old – in addition to that, he has played in 6 of England’s last 7 games.
It is not just his number of appearances that are notable, as his performances within them should also be applauded: this season, he has averaged 3.8 tackles, 2.3 interceptions, 0.6 clearances and 0.4 blocks per game, while also making 1.3 dribbles and completing 89.5% of his attempted passes, as per WhoScored.
So whether people feel Rice had a bad game or not, many Hammers fans have pointed out that he should not be written off, having witnessed his talent week in week out.
A selection of Twitter reaction to the criticism, including posts from defensive West Ham fans, can be seen below:
West Ham fans, how underrated is Rice? Join the discussion by commenting below…
