Declan Rice of Arsenal has continued to show his class as a defensive midfielder in the 2024 European Championship. The English midfield enforcer is on top of the list of players that have won the highest number of tackles in the tournament as per Stathead. How is he doing it?
Declan Rice in action for England
Rice is the first player to win more than 10 tackles in Euro 2024. Interestingly, the 25-year-old midfielder only won one in his first game of the competition. However, he stepped up when the Three Lions of England clashed with Denmark in their second match of the tournament. He gained the ball three times in the encounter. During the final match of Group C, the Arsenal guy added two more to his name.
The unbeatable midfielder continued to win the ball when England played against Slovakia in the round of 16. This time, Rice won 2 of his 4 attempted tackles. His highest tally so far in the tournament was recorded when his country clashed with Switzerland in the quarter finals. He won all his 4 attempts to dispossess his opponents. It should be noted this tally is the highest of any player ahead of the semi-finals.
Altogether, the Arsenal man won 12 tackles in 16 attempts. This gives him a 75% win rate which is the highest among players that have tackled 12 or more opponents so far in the showpiece. Meanwhile, the player closest to him among those that qualified for the semi final of Euro 2024 is Jules Koundé. This French defender has only won 9 tackles in five games in the tournament. It remains to be seen if the France international will catch up with Declan Rice before the end of the competition.
Image: The Mirror