Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag has admitted his admiration for Declan Rice.
Ten Hag wanted to sign the former West Ham captain before he left for Arsenal. United then signed Mason Mount from Chelsea.
"He (Rice) is a very good player and he would absolutely have fit in here. But it's not that I'm not happy with Mason. This is what you are implying. I am very happy with Mason and he is also a very robust player," said Ten Hag.
"You see in his profile: he played in his last four seasons - this is the fifth - in the last four seasons he only had one small (injury) at the end of his Chelsea career. Before that, he played almost all the games, three seasons in a row, every third day.
Ten Hag emphasises Mount has been unlucky with his injuries this season.
"It is really unlucky what happened and he is a really good player. We have really missed him, he absolutely could have contributed," he added.