Declan Rice: From Arsenal's Final Piece to Ballon d'Or Contender

Declan Rice has already shifted the landscape at Arsenal. The Premier League trophy is back in north London for the first time in 22 years, and he has spent the season at the heart of it all, driving Mikel Arteta’s side from midfield and justifying every penny of that £105 million fee.

That price tag once felt like a gamble. It doesn’t now. Since arriving from West Ham in 2023, the academy graduate has barely missed a beat or a game, anchoring a team that has grown in authority with him dictating the tempo. Arsenal needed one last piece to complete a complex title-winning puzzle. Rice has looked exactly that.

His influence has naturally pushed the conversation towards the individual stage. Talk of a future Ballon d’Or tilt has gathered pace, especially with a World Cup on North American soil looming and England desperate to end six decades of hurt. If Rice were to lift a global trophy with the Three Lions, the narrative would write itself: Premier League champion, World Cup winner, leader-in-waiting for his country. Ballon d’Or contender.

But not everyone is ready to elevate him to that pedestal.

Robbie Fowler, who knows exactly what elite England midfielders look like, drew a firm line when weighing up Rice’s Golden Ball prospects. For Fowler, the comparison that keeps coming back is unavoidable: Steven Gerrard.

“I like Declan Rice,” Fowler told GOAL, speaking courtesy of BetMGM. Then came the benchmark. “When we talk about Declan Rice and how good he is, you compare him, obviously, to the likes of Stevie G. If I'm being honest, I don't think he's Steven's level. That's not me being all Liverpool.”

It was a blunt assessment, not a dismissal. Fowler acknowledged the growth since Rice swapped east London for the Emirates.

“I think Declan Rice, since he's gone to Arsenal, he has become a more complete player. But I don't think he's the level that Steven Gerrard is just yet. Look, Steven Gerrard never won the Ballon d'Or.”

That last line matters. Gerrard, who dragged Liverpool to Istanbul in 2005 and finished third in the Ballon d’Or that year, never actually claimed the prize. If a player of that impact and aura could fall short, what does Rice still need to add?

Fowler’s answer is simple: another gear.

“It is what it is in terms of his performances. 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. It does sound like I'm having a little bit of a go, but I'm not. I think Declan Rice is a fantastic player, but I don't think he's on the realms of the Ballon d'Or list just yet.”

The numbers back up the caution. In the 2025 Ballon d’Or vote, Rice finished 27th. Respectable, but nowhere near the podium. At that point he had no major silverware with Arsenal to lean on, only the admiration of those who watched him closely and understood his value to the system.

Now the picture has changed. A domestic title sits on his CV. He came agonisingly close to a historic double, only to suffer Champions League heartbreak at club level. That sting may yet fuel him. Players at his level tend to store those nights away and return sharper, more ruthless.

The next chapter belongs to England. Rice moves from Arsenal’s metronome to Gareth Southgate’s midfield anchor, carrying the expectations of a nation that has waited 60 years for something tangible to celebrate. For all the talk of systems and structures, tournaments like this often hinge on players who can bend games to their will. Gerrard once did that. Rice is trying to prove he can.

Those around him speak of a grounded character, a Kingston upon Thames native who understands his own journey as much as his destination. He would be the first to admit he is not yet at Gerrard’s level. That honesty does not dilute his ambition. It sharpens it.

Rice has never been one to shirk a challenge. Matching Gerrard’s influence is one. Climbing from 27th on the Ballon d’Or list into genuine contention is another. Add the weight of trying to turn England’s near-misses into a long-awaited triumph, and you have the kind of stage that forges legacies.

He has the platform, the role, the responsibility. Now comes the question that will define the next phase of his career: can Declan Rice turn being the final piece of Arsenal’s jigsaw into becoming the centrepiece of world football’s biggest prize?