Declan Rice will not sign a new contract with West Ham as it stands and will consider leaving the club this summer, 90min understands.
Rice has established himself as one of the best central midfielders in Europe and is the driving force of a West Ham side that are on the cusp of reaching the Europa League final.
90min revealed at the start of April that Rice and his representatives had made it clear to West Ham that he was ready to move on, with the England international keen to play Champions League football and challenge for trophies.
And while the Hammers can still achieve that with success in the Europa League, 90min understands that Rice remains open to moving this summer and will not commit his future to the club.
West Ham publicly value Rice at £150m and want him to stay for at least another 12 months – manager David Moyes has said on many occasions that he is not for sale – but sources have told 90min that if an offer of £120m were to be received, it is almost certain to be accepted by majority owner David Sullivan.
Manchester United are among the clubs interested in the Rice and they are prepared to break their transfer record to sign him this summer if incoming manager Erik ten Hag gives his seal of approval. Manchester City and Chelsea, the club who released Rice as a 14-year-old, also hold a strong interest and could make moves of their own.
Listen now to 90min’s brand new podcast, Talking Transfers, with Scott Saunders & Graeme Bailey. Toby Cudworth joins the show this week to discuss contract situations at West Ham, while there are updates on Man City’s pursuit of Erling Haaland and Chelsea’s plans for Romelu Lukaku.
Rice has two years remaining on his current deal, though the Hammers have a one-year option which they are almost certain to trigger if he doesn’t move on.
90min also understands that Rice would be open to negotiating a new contract if West Ham were prepared to include a release clause – but that’s not something the club are willing to consider at this time.
The other problem for West Ham is that Rice’s ability is almost certain to command in excess of £250,000-a-week in wages should he join any of United, City and Chelsea.
And although money is not understood to be the motivating factor in Rice’s decision, that’s not a figure the Hammers’ wage structure could accommodate at this moment in time – unless Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky, who along with Pavel Horsky bought a 27% stake in the club in November, steps forward to alter the finances of the club.
