Regarding Liverpool legend Graeme Souness's public criticism of Rice, Chelsea legend Javier Hasselbaink shared his thoughts.

After England's defeat in the World Cup semi-finals, Souness criticized Rice as "limited in ability" and believed he was better suited to playing center-back.

Hasselbaink expressed his views on this in talkSPORT's "White & Jordan" program.

“I don’t think he’s reached his limit. I disagree with Souness. I’ve seen Rice up close, in training, and in matches. I think he can be even more dominant if he has more confidence in himself. I think he can score more goals and take more shots.”

“These things can be added, but the premise is that he needs to realize it himself first.”

When asked what Souness meant by his comments, Hasselbaink continued, "You'll have to ask him, but I do think Rice is excellent. I also think that, in today's market, he's worth over £100 million."

“I don’t think he’s Rodri, but I don’t think he was 100% fit in the last two games either, because he can offer more.”

"But the question comes back to this: Is he still better than the others on the bench? I would say yes."

"So I think he's a very good player, really very good. I also think Arsenal won the title because of him."

Hasselbaink continued, "Most midfielders pass the ball laterally; you can't advance 90% of the time. That's impossible because you have to hold onto the ball."

“If you look at Rodri, analyze Rodri, he mostly passes the ball laterally, only occasionally sending it to the striker when there’s space. Rice does the same. Believe me, I’m a striker, and I want him to pass the ball forward. Of course I want that, because I want to get the ball, but most of the time, you can’t, it’s impossible.”

"Objectively speaking, that was a long time ago. Football has changed a lot because the space is completely different. The tactical terms haven't changed, but the space is completely different. Even when I was playing, there were far more transitions between attack and defense than there are now."

"Don't get me wrong, I have a lot of respect for Souness. He was a very, very good player, but you can't keep playing forward forever. You can't, you really can't."

"So most of the time you can only pass sideways and wait for the right opportunity. What he should be looking at is how many goals Rice has conceded? That's what we should be discussing."

How many times did he lose possession? How many key passes did he make?