It’s now abundantly clear why West Ham have come to an agreement with Declan Rice over his future.
The midfielder and the Hammers have come to an accord, with the England international set to remain at the club this summer, but there is the potential of him leaving at the end of next season. 
He will have two years left on his deal at that point, and the Hammers will be able to demand a huge fee, provided that he does not commit his future to the club by signing a new contract, which remains a possibility.
City, after all, have just agreed to sign Erling Haaland from Borussia Dortmund.
That deal is set to cost £51.2m. That’s just over £10m more than the Irons paid to sign Seb Haller from Eintracht Frankfurt, and the Norway international is arguably the single most exciting striker in world football.
The deal has happened because Dortmund inserted a release clause into his contract, which was running down, and it was a case of either selling him for this figure or letting him leave on a free.
They had no leverage.
Next summer, the Hammers will hold basically every card when it comes to Rice’s future, and will be able to demand the kind of fee we deserve for Rice.
The obvious hope is that he stays. But if he goes, rest assured West Ham will get the highest fee possible.
