Darwin Nunez EMBARRASSES Declan Rice in AMAZING stat

Darwin Nunez has really made Declan Rice look shocking in a bizarre stat thrown up by the Premier League.

Darwin Nunez seriously caught the eye against Chelsea on Sunday. The Uruguayan played a lot more football than initially planned, given Diogo Jota started the fixture.

But a rib injury for the Portugal striker brought Nunez into the fray. The no.9 got about the pitch incredibly well and while he didn't end up with any chances of his own, he was a defensive force.

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Three tackles won is an incredible feat for any striker, let alone in a big fixture. But Nunez was eager to race back at all times, winning a couple right on the edge of Reds' box.

It was the defensive display a manager dreams of. It was also the defensive display that Mikel Arteta isn't getting from his star midfielder, Declan Rice.

Darwin vs Declan

Whoscored put the spotlight on an incredible stat after the weekend: Darwin Nunez has won more tackles in the Premier League this season than Arsenal's Declan Rice.

Two more, to be precise. Incredibly, he's done it despite playing a third of the minutes Arsenal have given Rice (red card or not).

And there are two things on show here. Firstly, there's Darwin's defensive magnificence. He deserves all the praise in the world for it.

But it also highlights just how below-par Rice has been. The England star averaged 2.32 tackles per 90 minutes in the Premier League last season - this year he's down to 1.08.

Nunez is averaging 4.09, if you're interested. Don't expect him to keep that figure up, as it would make him one of the best tacklers in the Premier League.

Maybe Arne Slot can turn him into that - but we'll probably want a bigger sample size before we're celebrating Darwin Makelele.

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