"He's maybe one we should have tried to grab" - Steven Gerrard names Arsenal star Liverpool should have signed before the Gunners

Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard believs the club made a mistake by not signing Arsenal star Declan Rice when he was at West Ham United. He claims that the midfield would have been much better with the Englishman playing in the middle.

Speaking on the Smith Brothers podcast, Gerrard said he has been a fan of Rice for some time and wishes Liverpool had signed him. He heaped praise on the Arsenal man and said:

"I love Declan Rice, I've been singing his praises for a long time. I coached Villa against West Ham before he went to Arsenal, I didn't realise how big he was because hadn't met him in person. You get in the tunnel and think, 'oh my god, that's some profile for a midfielder'. If you're building a midfielder, he's got a body to die for, if you're 6ft1in, 6ft2in, and have the legs, the power, that's the midfielder you want to be." "He was calm in possession, an animal out of it, up and down, I really like him as a person as well. I think he's really getting into that class where he's becoming a world-class midfielder. He's maybe one we should've tried to grab from West Ham, I don't know whether we did but imagine him in this midfield now."

Arsenal signed Rice for £105 million in 2023, months after failing to sign Moises Caicedo. Liverpool made a £110 million bid for the Ecuadorian in the same summer, but did not move for the Englishman.

Liverpool told to sign PL star who is similar to Arsenal's Declan Rice by Dean Saunders

Former Liverpool striker Dean Saunders has urged the Reds to sign Elliot Anderson from Nottingham Forest. He compared the midfielder with Arsenal's Declan Rice and said:

"The best players in the world never give the ball away. That is what separates the best players from the rest. We saw Elliot Anderson at youth level, and also when he broke through in the Premier League, and he never gave the ball away. His football brain is amazing. He has to add some goals to his game, but he can play any position in that midfield. Number six, number eight, number 10. He is like Declan Rice. He can do a bit of everything."

Anderson is a target for several clubs, with Manchester City, Manchester United, and Chelsea leading the chase for the former Newcastle United star.

Edited by Sripad