‘Incredible’ - Declan Rice has already given his view on potential new Man City midfield partner

Declan Rice and Mateo Kovacic could be Manchester City’s new midfielders in 2023/24, when Pep Guardiola’s men defend their European crown.

City have already agreed personal terms with Kovacic and are expected to wrap up a deal soon, while they are reportedly interested in West Ham United captain Rice. The Guardian claimed City are set to ‘enter the running’ to sign the England international, with Arsenal, Bayern Munich, Newcastle United and Manchester United also keeping an eye on the situation.

It’s a real possibility, therefore, that a Rice-Kovacic partnership could be in operation at the Etihad next season. There’s also a healthy foundation to build from given both have praised each other in the past.

Speaking in an interview with BT Sport last year, Rice was asked to select his toughest midfield opponents in the Premier League and expressed his admiration for Kovacic’s technical ability.

“He is incredible. I think you don’t really realise how good he is until you play against him,” claimed Rice. “Obviously, when you watch him, you appreciate the good footballer that he is.

“He can take the ball in tight areas, his dribbling ability is unbelievable, he can find a pass, control games, and is fairly quick as well. He’s always been a tough opponent to play against. Every time I played against him, even in the Euros, he’s done some stuff on the ball where I thought, ‘wow, he’s a top player’.”

Meanwhile, Kovacic has also sung the praises of Rice in the past, when speaking ahead of the aforementioned England match against Croatia in Euro 2020.

“They [England] have an excellent midfield,” said the ex-Real Madrid man. “[Mason] Mount is in excellent form. Rice as well in West Ham, and [Jordan] Henderson. They have a lot of quality there.”

Should Rice and Kovacic join City they would add to Guardiola’s midfield resources alongside Rodri, Kalvin Phillips, Ilkay Gundogan, Bernardo Silva and Kevin De Bruyne, although Gundogan could leave for free at the end of the month when his contract expires. Meanwhile, Paris Saint-Germain are interested in Silva and Phillips has also been linked with a City exit, meaning Rice and Kovacici could provide replacements for those departing stars.