In a heartwarming glimpse into football’s unspoken brotherhood, Arsenal’s midfield colossus Declan Rice has let slip that two bona fide legends—one from Liverpool’s pantheon, the other from Chelsea’s—slid into his direct messages with glowing praise following his jaw-dropping performance in the Gunners’ 2-1 derby triumph over Manchester City last weekend. The 26-year-old Englishman, whose £105 million transfer from West Ham in 2023 has evolved from gamble to genius, dropped the bombshell during a candid chat on Amazon Prime’s No Compliance podcast, where he dissected his brace of long-range rockets that silenced the Etihad and propelled Mikel Arteta’s side to within a point of Premier League leaders Liverpool. As X erupts with #RiceDMs and fans speculate on the identities—whispers point to Liverpool’s Jordan Henderson and Chelsea’s N’Golo Kanté—Rice’s revelation underscores the respect he’s commanded across the divide, offering a rare peek behind the curtain of Premier League rivalries amid Arsenal’s surging title charge.
The Etihad epic on September 27 was Rice’s magnum opus: a man-of-the-match masterclass where the ex-Ireland international neutralized Rodri’s metronomic menace, clocked 14.2 km (highest on the pitch), and unleashed two thunderbolts— a 35-yard curler in the 18th minute to open the scoring, and a 92nd-minute piledriver that sealed the spoils after Erling Haaland’s 78th-minute header had sparked Etihad pandemonium. Arsenal’s first win at City’s fortress since 2015 catapulted them to 19 points from 7 games, just one behind Arne Slot’s Reds, and Rice’s double—his first goals of the season—drew universal acclaim. “Declan’s not just a No. 6; he’s a game-changer,” Arteta beamed post-match, while Pep Guardiola, gracious in defeat, quipped: “That second goal? Unfair. He’s too good for us mortals.”
Rice, speaking to hosts Laura Woods and Jimmy Bullard on the podcast aired today, couldn’t hide his boyish grin when the DM deluge surfaced. “After City, my phone was blowing up—mates, family, even some old academy lads from Chelsea,” he revealed, his Cockney cadence laced with humility. “But the real shock? Sliding into my DMs from a Liverpool legend and a Chelsea great. Proper messages, too—not the generic ‘well done’ stuff. The Liverpool one was like, ‘That was Henderson-esque—keep bossing it, kid.’ And the Chelsea fella? Straight fire: ‘Kanté would be proud; you owned that midfield like it was yours.’ Made my week, honestly. These are guys I grew up idolizing—Jordan’s leadership at Anfield, N’Golo’s bite at the Bridge. To get that from them? Surreal.”
While Rice coyly dodged naming names—”Can’t spill all the tea”—the grapevine points squarely to Henderson, Liverpool’s treble-winning skipper (2019 UCL, 2020 PL) who now captains Ajax after his Al-Ettifaq stint, and Kanté, the diminutive destroyer whose 2016-17 Chelsea rampage netted a PL title and 2022 World Cup glory before his Al-Ittihad exile. Henderson, a vocal Rice admirer since their England caps (Rice’s 50th came in March), had tweeted post-match: “Declan’s levels are unreal—proper engine.” Kanté, ever the quiet assassin, reposted Rice’s goal clip with a heart emoji, fueling the speculation. The podcast clip, shared by @AmazonPrimeVideoUK, racked 3.2 million views in hours, with fans dissecting: “Henderson and Kanté? Peak respect—Rice’s the bridge between eras.”f96d70
The timing resonates amid Arsenal’s red-hot September: back-to-back wins over Tottenham (3-0) and City have Arteta’s Invincibles 2.0 purring, with Rice at the core—3.8 tackles, 91% pass accuracy, and now goals that echo his West Ham thunder (7 in 2022-23). Yet, Rice’s journey—from Chelsea academy reject at 14 (a scar he wears with pride, per his 2024 The Players’ Tribune essay) to West Ham captaincy and Arsenal linchpin—adds poignant layers to the DMs. “Chelsea let me go; Liverpool were rivals I dreamed of facing,” he reflected. “Getting props from their icons? Closure, mate.” Henderson, who mentored Rice at Euro 2020, and Kanté, whose tenacity Rice mirrors (both 5’10” destroyers), embody the English midfield lineage—Gerrard to Lampard, now Rice’s realm.
X became a love-in under #RiceLegends, with 2.1 million posts by dusk. @ArsenalNation’s thread—”DMs from Hendo & Kante? Rice is THE midfielder. Gunners title loading”—hit 450,000 likes, while Liverpool’s @KopiteCentral joked: “Jordan sliding in? Even in Amsterdam, he’s captaining England chats.” Chelsea faithful, stung by their 12th-place mire (7 points, Caicedo banned, Palmer sidelined), found solace: @CFCBlueBlood: “Kanté on Rice? Our boy’s the future—Boehly, splash for him!” Pundit Alan Shearer, on Match of the Day, gushed: “Those DMs say it all—Rice is generational. City’s loss is our gain.” Even Slot, prepping for Palace, nodded: “Declan’s form? Liverpool respects that.”
Rice’s candor fits his grounded vibe: a family man (partner Lauren Fry and kids in Hertfordshire), mental health advocate (partnering with Mind after academy knocks), and community driver (his DR3 Foundation raised £500k for Kingston youth this year). The podcast veered deeper: Rice on Euro 2028 dreams (“Captaining England? Manifesting”), Arteta’s “mind games” (“Mikel’s like a dad—tough love”), and City scars (“Haaland’s a beast; that second goal? Pure revenge”). But the DMs stole the show, humanizing a titan who’s 15/2 to win PL Player of the Season (per Bet365).
Broader ripples? Arsenal’s title tilt intensifies—next, Southampton away, then Liverpool at Anfield in November. Rice’s brace dented City’s invincibility (unbeaten in 25 PL games pre-loss), narrowing the gap to three points. For rivals: Liverpool’s Slot eyes Rice as “the benchmark”; Chelsea’s Maresca, amid Boehly’s £250m spree, laments the academy miss (“Declan’s what we need now”). Globally, Sky Italia hails: “Rice: L’Inghilterra’s Pirlo—DMs from gods confirm it.”
As Emirates floodlights hum tonight, Rice trains solo, phone buzzing with more props. From academy outcast to legend-magnet, his arc inspires: talent triumphs, but humility hooks. Those DMs? Not just praise—passports to pantheon. Arsenal soar; Rice reigns. In football’s fraternity, a simple slide says it all: respect, raw and real.
