At a time when footballers have not been helping themselves, Declan Rice is different. Away from the pitch, he is a thoroughly decent person, a credit to his club, and in my view, the Premier League’s most likeable player.
You only needed to watch the video of Rice with a young fan after Sunday’s 1-0 win over Manchester United. He is crying. He doesn’t know why. But Rice treats like him like any captain should. He hugs him. He gifts him his shirt. He tells him he loves him.
Cynics will say he knew he was on camera.