- By Dave Langton
We can’t see Declan Rice wanting to move to Manchester United so it may be that his avenues to a West Ham exit are firmly closed!
The Hammers midfielder is again being linked with a switch to Old Trafford, as per The Daily Telegraph. Of course, that’s the newspaper that got it dead wrong over him leaving last year!
United are said to be eyeing a deal under prospective new manager Erik Ten Hag but why would he go? Why would West Ham sell him?
They’re two very different questions. Firstly, we know Declan isn’t motivated by money. While United could hypothetically come in with a huge £150m bid, Declan isn’t going to see his head turned by a huge contract offer of £400,000-per-week or more.
United are actually behind the Hammers in the Premier League table. So it just doesn’t make sense for him to make the move; his motivation is trophies, competing with the best, and winning the biggest prizes. United are a million miles away.
Chelsea are out of the race after their ownership struggles. It’s a non-starter.
The only clubs who could potentially give Declan everything he is said to want are Manchester City and Liverpool. The former want Erling Haaland in a blockbuster summer deal instead, and the Reds won’t pay over £100m for Declan.
West Ham don’t want him to leave. There is an acceptance at the club that the deal simply cannot be considered unless there’s a mega price tag involved.
It just doesn’t look likely to happen.
Mark my words. If not this year, it will be next year he ends up at Real Madrid. Kroos and Modric are aging, he will replace them.
You are , I believe, correct in saying he isn’t motivated solely by cash. But I think you are wrong in assuming he will remain at West Ham. As you say he wants to compete for, and win, the top trophies and atr this moment in time he has as much chance of doing that at West Ham as he does at Manchester United, so there would be no advantage to him being Old Trafford bound.
However dismissing Chelsea as potential suitors is a tad premature I believe. It is conceivable, once the ownership issue is resolved, that the new owners will wish to make a statement of intent which could manifest itself in the form of a record breaking player bid. Nor would I discount Manchester City as a potential destination. And of course there are two clubs in Spain who may well be casting envious eyes at him, particularly Barcelona who have been very well served by Sergio Busquets over the years but he is a player in the autumn of his career.
I hope he does stay at West Ham for obvious reasons. But the club will have to, at least in my opinion, show a serious level of ambition to persuade him to put pen to paper on a new contract. Will West Ham demonstrate the ambition that may persuade him that his longer term future is with the club ? Only time will tell but personally I think it is unlikely given our history in that area over the many years I have supported the club.