Declan Rice’s ideal position in the Arsenal starting lineup is communicated to Arteta by Cesc Fabregas.

Declan Rice, our record purchase, has the potential to yield much more for our manager, Mikel Arteta, at Arsenal, according to Cesc Fabregas.

The Englishman, who joined us in the summer, has been nothing short of amazing. He is a perfect fit for Arteta’s project. He has, in fact, changed the dynamics in our engine room. It’s the one position where we don’t need to be concerned. He has played as a holding midfielder and, more recently, as a box-to-box midfielder since making his debut for us.

If Rice is permitted to play as a box-to-box midfielder instead of a holding midfielder, which restricts his ability to play with the ball at his feet, Fabregas thinks Mikel Arteta can get the most out of him.

According to statements from 90min, Fabregas told Premier League Productions, “Rice’s physicality allows him to cover so much of the pitch that sometimes, as a lone No 6, you lose a big part of his capabilities, especially physically.” He’s developed alongside the ball.

“I believe he can deliver final balls at this point, even if he needs to go to the boundary like Rodri does. We have seen him on the brink of the box, in the Champions League finals, and he has scored goals on a few occasions. Rice is also gifted in that area.

In an offensive role, Rice can definitely “explode,” in Fabregas’ words. Even though the Englishman has only made 11 appearances for our team and only one goal, he has attempted nine shots, four of which have been on target, ranking him fourth among Gunners with the most on-target attempts (only Martin Odegaard, Gabriel Martinelli, and Bukayo Saka have more). This suggests that if he is to play in an attacking role, he has sufficient ability.