Thomas Tuchel has claimed that Declan Rice is a “very strong player” and has claimed  he is a “Chelsea boy” at heart.

The Chelsea boss seems keen to stoke up speculation with his comments on the Hammers skipper and was keen seemingly to make his point before the 3-2 defeat at the weekend.

With the transfer window approaching there will be discontent among the Hammers fans that he has chosen to make such a point.

However, there is no chance whatsoever of the 22 year old leaving the Hammers this winter and the club will be offering him a huge contract come the summer.

Any bid will have to surpass the £100 million paid by Manchester City for Jack Grealish according to Davis Moyes with Rice’s price climbing towards the 120 million mark.

Dec improves game on game and the Hammers are set to face a fierce battle next summer vut suchj is the club’s progress hopes remain high that he will remain at the London Stadium

Dec has scored one goal and made three assists during his time on the pitch this season, and has also scored twice in the Europa League.

Tuchel has revealed that he is a fan declaring: ““It happens at every single club in the world that sometimes players get released in one moment and they have their career on a different way, so this is a pretty normal thing.

“I am absolutely aware that he is a Chelsea boy and he comes through the academy and he is very close to our guys.

“He’s a very strong player and in general, I am absolutely impressed by [Tomas] Soucek and him, what they do since I came into the Premier League. What they do for West Ham. They are real helpers on the pitch, they have an incredible volume both of them.

“They take responsibility for high pressing, for deep defending, for filling the gaps on the wings, for deep build-up, for goals from set-pieces. Both of them are simply doing everything.”