Declan Rice: Arsenal's Key to Premier League Glory and Ballon d'Or Aspirations

Declan Rice has just powered Arsenal to a first Premier League title in 22 years, turned a £105 million price tag into a statement rather than a burden, and planted himself at the heart of everything Mikel Arteta is building in north London. Little wonder some are already whispering his name in Ballon d’Or conversations for 2026.

But not everyone is buying that leap.

Robbie Fowler, a man who knows what it looks like when an English midfielder operates at the very edge of world class, is holding the brakes. For him, Rice is outstanding. Just not that outstanding. Not yet.

Rice the missing piece

When Arsenal smashed the then British transfer record to prise Rice away from West Ham in 2023, they weren’t just signing a midfielder. They were signing a statement of intent and, as it turned out, a missing piece.

Rice has barely missed a beat since. Almost ever-present, he has become the metronome and the muscle in Arteta’s engine room, driving a side that had been threatening to challenge into one that finally finished the job. The title returning to north London after a 22-year exile owed plenty to the composure, range and authority of the No.41.

He has looked every inch a leader in waiting. For club. For country. For whatever comes next.

That rise, coupled with Arsenal’s surge, has inevitably dragged his name towards the Golden Ball debate. If he can carry that form onto the biggest international stage, the argument goes, why shouldn’t he stand alongside the game’s global superstars?

World stage, bigger stakes

England will head to North America this summer still chasing a first major trophy since 1966, still burdened by near-misses and what-ifs. Rice sits right at the centre of their hopes.

If he can help the Three Lions finally collect a global crown, his standing will explode. A player already viewed by many as a future England captain would suddenly have the medal to match the reputation. That is the kind of moment that shifts a player up Ballon d’Or ballots, especially for a midfielder whose work is often more appreciated by coaches than by highlight reels.

It would also help erase some of the sting from club-level disappointment. Arsenal’s title win stands tall, but Rice has already tasted Champions League final heartache. Adding an international trophy would tilt the narrative sharply back in his favour.

Fowler’s verdict: not Gerrard level yet

Fowler, though, isn’t ready to place Rice on the same pedestal as England’s modern greats, or to see him as a perennial Golden Ball contender.

“I like Declan Rice,” the former England and Liverpool striker said, speaking exclusively to GOAL courtesy of BetMGM. The admiration is clear. The comparison is sharper.

When Rice’s name gets thrown into the same breath as Steven Gerrard, Fowler draws a firm line. Gerrard, who finished third in the 2005 Ballon d’Or voting after hauling Liverpool to that unforgettable Champions League triumph in Istanbul, set a brutal benchmark for English midfielders.

“If I'm being honest, I don't think he's Steven's level,” Fowler said. Not a tribal dig, he stressed, not a Liverpool reflex. Just his assessment of where Rice currently stands.

Since moving to Arsenal, Rice has become “a more complete player”, Fowler acknowledged. The strides are obvious. The influence is growing. The standards, though, are unforgiving.

“He's been great for Arsenal and he's obviously gone up a notch. But I think he needs to go up another notch, if I'm being genuine in terms of his performances,” Fowler added. In his eyes, Rice remains short of the “realms of the Ballon d'Or list just yet.”

It’s a harsh measure, but the Ballon d’Or is a harsh award. Gerrard never won it. That’s the scale Rice is being measured against.

Climbing the ladder

The numbers back up Fowler’s caution. In the 2025 Ballon d’Or vote, Rice finished 27th. Respectable, but a long way from the podium. At that point he had no major club silverware to lean on, his performances judged without the glow of a title.

Now, the picture has changed. A Premier League crown sits on his CV. Arsenal came agonisingly close to a historic double, and Rice was central to the push. The perception of him as a big-game, big-season player has sharpened.

The question is what comes next.

Rice is not the type to pretend he already sits at Gerrard’s table. The Kingston upon Thames native has always projected a grounded, honest streak. He knows there are rungs still to climb. That hasn’t stopped him yet.

His focus now swings towards England, towards that long, painful 60-year wait for a trophy, towards a summer on North American soil that could alter the trajectory of his career. Deliver there, and the Ballon d’Or chatter won’t feel speculative. It will feel inevitable.

For now, he is the midfielder who completed Arsenal’s jigsaw, not yet the man who completed football. The gap between those two statuses is vast.

The real test is whether Rice can turn that gap into a target rather than a ceiling.