The Declan Rice debate rages on in typical Hammers fashion…if we haven’t something to worry about we’ll soon find something.
But come on, the latest suggestions that Spurs are about to wait three years to land the 19 year old are frankly ludicrous!
While Rice has been amazing in recent games we are judging things from inside our Hammers bubble and the facts are that he would not walk into a starting place in a top six side at this point in his career.
His potential is enormous but it is just potential at the moment and he still has much to prove to become the completed article.
He enjoyed a good run in the West Ham defence last season because of injuries and by his own admission he made a number of mistakes which the club stats back up.
This season he has taken to a new defensive midfield role and was one of the best players on the pitch last Sunday against Chelsea but again we must remember that was one game.
The club are reported to have offered £15,000 per week plus £20,000 per Premier League appearance and that to me seems very fair at this stage of the proceedings – a vast improvement on the £3,000 peer week bonus and £10,000 per Premier League appearance he currently earns.
He has plenty of time to renegotiate a better deal as he improves further, this is not his only opportunity.
Being a Surrey based Hammer myself close to Kingston when he grew up, I know a few people that personally know Declan and they all say the same, that the boy just wants to play football and is enjoying life at West Ham.
When I have asked those who know him about his contract, they say he never wants to discuss it and says he is happy to leave that to his agent but adds he wants to stay at West Ham.
There are other factors that need remembering too! The club claim he is still so young to throw bucket loads of cash at him could spoil him.
They made, what most would consider an error, in splashing out £20k a week on Reece Oxford, who has done nothing but go backwards ever since.
Another youngster who comes to mind is the once astonishingly talented Micah Richards who broke through for Manchester City aged 18, made an appearance for England, and was seen as the great hope of our international defence never mind Palace’s.
Now, amazingly at 30, he has left City spent a time at Fiorentina and is now operating in the Championship for Villa.
Scott Sinclair join Manchester City aged 23 and is now in the “where are they now” category ( Celtic actually).
Now no one is saying Declan will be anything other than a massive player but there are considerations involved and no club should be caving in to agent demands after a couple of decent games.
There’s plenty of time to sort this out and the club need to take a longer look at him – along of course, more pertinently, with the manager.
Excellent summary of the issues. The examples of players who suffered from too much hype too early are well chosen. The press encourage this very often & then are the first to put the boot in on players they have raved about. It makes almost as good a story when people fail as when they reach the top. I believe at most clubs they get advice in dealing with the money (not that they all take it!) but being told you are world class, that you are being chased by the big clubs -even when it is not true- leads to ruined careers & possibly even worse personal problems for young players. From a selfish-West Ham-point of view I hope Ricecan avoid this this, but also I hope for his own sake that he is not eaten up & spat out by the media & the people around him. All the accounts from those who know him say he is a decent lad, so I hope he gets a career he can look back on & be satisfied with. Nobody knows atthis stage-least of all him-how far he can go. He needs to be left in peace for a bit so everybody can find out. Some hope……