Declan Rice is a key player for West Ham and England (Photo by James Williamson – AMA/Getty Images)
Contrary to recent reports, West Ham manager David Moyes says there is ‘no chance’ Declan Rice will be sold in January, amid links to Chelsea and Manchester United.
Rice is expected to leave the London Stadium in the near future having openly admitted his desire to play for a Champions League club back in November.
The 24-year-old’s deal is up in 2024, and while there is an option to trigger a one-year extension, The Athletic previously reported that West Ham are resigned to losing their star midfielder.
The Irons captain has rejected three new contract offers, the last of which would have seen him become the highest paid player in their history, and it has been nine months since talks were last held.
With his contract running down, Moyes and co. would be well placed to consider cashing in on Rice now given that it is probably their last chance to realistically sell him for a huge fee.
Moyes has repeatedly stated the England international is worth upwards of £100million.
Chelsea and United are the two frontrunners for his signature having been interested in his services for a number of years now, but any hopes of signing Rice next month have been dashed by Moyes himself.
David Moyes’ West Ham are 16th in the Premier League table (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)
Asked about Rice’s future in his pre-match press conference on Thursday, ahead of West Ham’s clash against Brentford, the manager gave a short and blunt reponse.
He said: ‘There will be no chance Declan Rice leaves in this window.’
With the Irons surprisingly languishing down in 16th in the table and with a Europa Conference League campaign to contend with, Moyes is keen not to lose any players in January.
He added: ‘We’ve said we’re probably not going to do much [transfer business], but that could change. I think if players left we would look to replace them but at the moment, I’ve got no indication of that.’
This all means that any interested parties will have to wait til next summer to make a move for Rice, with Chelsea his most likely destination given his strong connections to Stamford Bridge.
Rice came through their academy before getting released at the age of 14, is close friends with Blues and England star Mason Mount.
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The West Ham star has just 18 months left on his contract.
