Declan Rice, is without a doubt, one of the best defensive midfielders in European football right now but chances are, he might not be able to secure an exit.
West Ham United are willing to part ways with the midfielder in the summer but they have placed a staggering £150 million price tag on his shoulders and according to The Athletic, this enormous fee is causing a lot of indecisiveness.
Chelsea, Manchester United and Manchester City are also interested in the 23-year-old but they are yet to make any sort of a formal move.
The report claims: “Manchester United and Manchester City are also in the running [with Chelsea] but all three clubs have not made any contact yet and are set to wait for the 23-year-old’s contract to run down further before making an attempt.”
Will Declan Rice look to secure an exit in the summer?
Rice has two years left on his current deal plus there is an option to extend for another 12 months. The Hammers have already put forward a new deal but as per the rumours, the midfielder is not ready to sign the new deal as he wants to move out asap.
West Ham United do not need hit the panic button just yet but at the same time, the club won’t be able to make such high demands next year.
The £150m price tag is mainly because Declan Rice is world-class but David Moyes is somewhere hopeful that such a steep asking price will push away all the suitors and allow the club to hold onto him for one more year. However, we don’t think the England international will be too keen to remain at the club beyond this summer and if teams like Chelsea or City do not make a move soon enough then he himself will hand in a transfer request so that West Ham are forced to lower their demands.
🗣 @NizaarKinsella on Declan Rice:
“He’s expensive but he [would be] a really top signing. He makes sense in terms of longevity. He could be the future of Chelsea for years to come.” https://t.co/pYarMquff3 pic.twitter.com/Y7naW4EPMy
— London Is Blue Podcast ⭐️⭐️ (@LondonBluePod) May 30, 2022
Will the interested clubs make a bid for Declan Rice?
Manchester United seem to have already given up their interest in the midfielder because Ten Hag thinks he is too overpriced. The new manager has instead asked the management to focus on cheaper alternatives such as Kalvin Phillips and Ruben Neves.
The £150m valuation is also forcing Chelsea and Manchester City to have second thoughts and it won’t be a surprise if City also back off because they already have Rodri in their books. Yes, they need to bring in a replacement for Fernandinho but for that any decent defensive midfielder will do.
Chelsea might be the only club that remain interested in Declan Rice deep into the transfer season because Jorginho and Kante are both ageing and Tuchel needs to bring in an apt replacement.
Chelsea’s new owner will back the club with a significant transfer budget they can afford to spend so much money on a single player however, the only problem for the manager will be that he needs to strengthen other areas of his squad as well.
