Declan Rice Arsenal
Declan Rice Arsenal

Declan Rice is set to become one of the most sought-after midfielders this summer but as per the latest report, Manchester City are no longer interested in signing the 23-year-old.

The West Ham United midfielder looks all set to leave at the end of this season and several teams like Chelsea, Man United, Man City and Liverpool have registered an interest in him. But as per Claret & Hgh, the City think-tank are going to prioritise the signing of a centre-forward rather than a defensive midfielder.

Claret & Hugh’s source in Manchester said: “Pep is really impressed by Rice but he knows the club need to prioritise a world-class forward this summer after playing two seasons without a recognised striker.

“The overall package to sign Haaland means City can’t afford to sign Rice as well. They believe West Ham are well within their rights to demand what they want for him, but City can’t make the numbers work and will sign a cheaper defensive midfield option instead.”

We can understand why Pep Guardiola does not want to waste money on an expensive player like Declan Rice since he already has a world-class defensive midfielder in the form of Rodri so if he can get a backup option for cheap then the manager will blindly move for him.

But their exit from this transfer race is great news for the other suitors.

West Ham United have little to no chance at holding onto Declan Rice, especially if they fail to secure a spot in the Champions League next season but with Man City out of the race, teams like Chelsea, Man United and Liverpool have one less thing to worry about.

Man United are the team that desperately need a new defensive midfielder and they did not even since a player in that position in January because they want to go all out for Rice in the summer.

Liverpool are also looking at Rice as the long-term replacement for Wijanldum whereas Chelsea are eager to bring him in and act as the heir to Kante’s throne at the club.

Man City’s exit does very little to help West Ham United since the Etihad outfit wouldn’t have shied away from a financial battle, something that could have helped the Hammers jack up their demands.

Some of these sides are also looking at Youri Tielemans as a backup option but Declan Rice very much remains the top priority for everyone for the upcoming transfer window.

Real Madrid have also been mentioned in this race since Carlo Ancelotti is a huge fan of the midfielder but there’s no concrete interest from the La Liga side at the moment.

Read: Two sides might have already given up hope of a top-four finish.

Read: UEFA makes a really flattering decision regarding all their European finals.