West Ham “Got Done” With £100M Decan Rice Transfer

West Ham captain Jarrod Bowen was quick to lead the congratulations for former Hammers skipper Declan Rice last night.

Rice scored two free kicks in Arsenal win over Real Madrid in that Champions League quarter finals which has led to high praise for the West Ham academy graduate.

I certainly can’t remember seeing two better free-kicks in the same match, and the feat has rightly been hailed across the footballing world.

Rice, of course, lifted the Europa Conference League trophy as West Ham captain, but described last night’s brace as “the best night of my career.” Remarkably, those two goals were the first free-kicks he has ever scored in his career — and you’d expect him to be on full set-piece duty for England now, corners, freekicks and all.

However, claims that Rice has finally come of age or that he’s only now become a £100m footballer since joining Arsenal don’t sit too well with me. He was already a top-class performer and European trophy winner at West Ham — that’s why it cost £100m to take him to the Emirates.

Only last week, former Hammers boss David Moyes cheekily remarked that West Ham “got done” and that Arsenal should have paid the full £150m transfer fee he originally demanded. He may have had a point.

That said, when you look at the current contract saga at Liverpool, it’s fair to say West Ham probably did well to bank £100m — especially when Manchester City were the only other serious bidder, and only willing to offer £80m.

The real losers in the deal? Chelsea. They released Rice shortly before his 14th birthday for not being quick enough. Whoops.