Suggestions that Declan Rice will have seen Mark Noble’s penalty decision as a snub to his abilities from the spot are silly.
It’s been mentioned that the reason he looked so entirely disconsolate at the end of the game was for that reason but it’s impossible to believe such stuff.
Mark and Declan are as close as brothers. Time and again the 22 year old has spoken of his total admiration referring to him as “my captain.”
At the end of Sunday’s game Dec was sat on the ball looking as sick as any player I have ever seen and the only thought going through my head was “How on earth can anyone suggest he wants to be at any other club right now.”
Declan is as dedicated to this club as any player I’ve seen and I have everything crossed that he will be around for a long time yet.
Talk of Manchester United and Chelsea is never going to die because it’s the stuff that keeps many media types in business but that picture of him at the end of the game told us loads.
And it wasn’t that his pal had been asked to tale a penalty rather than him – he will know as well as anyone that Nobes is a penalty taker supreme and would have accepted the decision like the pro we know him to be.
The 22 year od, had played a fantastic game of football and watched his team compete throughout and that was surely the only reason he was so sick.
Spot on!