West Ham Must Be Prepared for Declan Rice Bids

West Ham kept hold of Declan Rice during the summer transfer window, despite constant rumours of Chelsea’s interest in the midfielder.

Blues boss, Frank Lampard, is a big admirer of West Ham’s star player. Declan Rice has proved to be one of the best holding midfielders in the Premier League and was the club’s Hammer of the Year last season.

Chelsea spent big in the summer, bringing over £200 million worth of talent to London. This spending spree included buying wonder kids Kai Havertz, Timo Werner and Malang Sarr. The West London club were also interested in signing Rice but preferred to sign Edouard Mendy to strengthen their goalkeeper options.

Rice was a boyhood blue, but after being released by Chelsea as a 14-year-old, he is now loved by the West Ham faithful. The Englishman has become one of the club’s key players and has even become the captain on the field when Mark Noble is absent.

The 21-year-old has made over 100 Premier League games and is now a regular in the Gareth Southgate’s England side. West Ham are determined to keep hold of their rising star and are currently planning to offer him a new contract, which would make him one of the club’s highest earners.

Chelsea, however, are monitoring the Englishman’s situation at the Hammers and could be tempted to make a move for him. The January transfer window opens in less than eight weeks, and West Ham must be prepared for a bid.

The star player is reportedly valued between £60 million and £80 million by the Hammers. This means that if Rice were sold he would be the most expensive player sale the club has ever made. Far surpassing the £25 million that was collected from the sale of Dimitri Payet.

If the Hammers want to keep Rice, then they need to show him how much they value him by giving him a new contract. The club, however, could accept a mega-offer for Rice, in that case, they need to be prepared to sign a much-needed replacement.