Why Declan Rice is becoming my favourite sportsman

I n the spring of 2013, a group of teenagers were going through their paces during a trial at West Ham United. The coaches had set up a number of drill stations, one of which was curling the ball into the net from the corner flag, with the left and then the right foot. It was one of a number of tasks that day, which was one day among many that summer. But something happened that caught the eye of Trevor Bumstead, the West Ham Under-15 coach. A gangly kid going through a growth spurt, who had been released from Chelsea, was doing something eccentric. It wasn't just that he was trying his hardest to complete the task; it was the sheer concentration etched on his