Declan Rice called out for 'cheating' as Graeme Souness launches new attack on Arsenal star

Declan Rice has earned huge plaudits across the course of his career but Graeme Souness continues to highlight the limitations in the Arsenal and England midfielder's game

Graeme Souness has again taken aim at Declan Rice - accusing the Arsenal midfielder of playing "old man's football".

The England star remains the most expensive player in the Gunners' history and has been crucial in them morphing into one of Europe's elite forces. Rice has proved a dominant force for club and country, helping Arsenal win the Premier League last season, but Souness is still not convinced by his quality and doesn't have him in the top bracket of midfielders.

He has taken issue with the position the 27-year-old adopts during games. Souness cited how Rice can often be seen as one of the deepest Arsenal players on the pitch, giving him more time as he plays almost as a central defender, with the ex-Sky Sports pundit suggesting he's "cheating" with his positioning as he continued his brutal assessment.

He said on Piers Morgan's new Football Uncensored show: "How many times do you see him as the last man with the ball. In the build-up, he's last man. 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.

"In my second or third home game (of my career), I went into the back four like all midfield players do today. 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."

Souness has previously claimed that Rice's game is limited, despite the clear influence he's had on Arsenal and England over the years. The Liverpool great suggests that, for a midfielder, he's playing too far back to truly have an impact on the outcome.

"He (Rice) plays too deep to affect the game," he continued. "I don't think he's got enough football. Let me tell you what he can do. He's the best defensive midfielder in the country right now, he smells danger. But then again, he's back there all the time.

"He's not a midfield player then is he? I think he may be a centre-half. The ball travels faster than you do. I see him run with the ball 30 yards and pass it square. He's a lovely kicker of the ball and opens his body up well, there's nothing to dislike about him. But modern players are a bit precious. Criticism doesn't fall easily on these (players') shoulders. He isn't the complete midfield player."

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