I'd say hand on heart, he's the best player i have seen in a Hammers shirt in my lifetime.
though you can't compare to likes of Di Canio, Payet etc as different positions
I just think since moving to defensive Mid he is the main reason we are challenging Europe at the moment, off the ball is where he excels - he breaks up so much play and is always in the right position, he's stamina is unbelievable - he just doesn't let up in the whole 90mins, constantly chasing back and covering others, he is really strong, versatile and can play a wide range of passes which to the eye they look simple - he carries the ball a lot from box to box - if he could get on the score sheet a bit more after some of his forward play then he really would be the complete player.
Noble is my hammers hero, but he isn't close to Rice in terms of ability and never has been.
talks of 100+ million etc is crazy but i just don't see how we could replace him, there's no way Souchek could get in the box and score like he does if it wasn't for Rice either.