By Samuel A. May 13, 2023
West Ham are hopeful of keeping Declan Rice beyond this season, however, manager David Moyes has admitted that he will most likely leave the club this summer.
The skipper, whose contract expires at the end of the campaign, has long been on the radar of the Premier League’s big sides. Speculation has intensified in recent months about a big money move to Arsenal, Chelsea or Manchester United.
“We honestly hope Dec stays, that’s the biggest thing. We would love for him to be a West Ham player, but we’re aware that might not be the case at the end of the season,” Moyes told reporters ahead of Sunday’s league trip to Brentford. “So that’s one of the scenarios around planning. There are plans that we have Dec here but we’re also fully aware there is a good chance we won’t have him.”
West Ham are currently 15th in the Premier League standings with 37 points, and are aiming to reach a first European final since 1976 after beating Dutch side AZ Alkmaar in the opening leg of their Conference League semifinal. Moyes said the club, who beat United 1-0 last weekend, are fully focused on staying in the top-flight and that planning for next season had been put on the back burner. “A lot of it will only start to go into place once we realise we have kept our Premier League place. We’re watching a lot of players, a lot of games, doing a lot of scouting, but the truth is the focus has been on staying in the Premier League.”
England star RIce has a value north of £100m by West Ham but with one year left on his contract he is expected to depart the Hammers at the end of a difficult domestic campaign that could probably end with a trophy in the Europa Conference League. This last stretch of the season will be a roller coaster to say the least.
Should Rice remain, Moyes does not envisage a busy transfer window. The manager said team planning instead has been complicated by their surprise relegation battle, which all but ended after last Sunday’s win over Manchester United. Last summer’s addition of nine players, costing more than £160m, was seen as too much change in the team for the Scottish.
