David Moyes has warned that West Ham will not just “roll over” and allow Declan Rice to leave the club amid renewed links to Chelsea.
The England midfielder’s future has been subject to fervent speculation throughout the last few transfer windows as his stock has continued to rise with both club and country, and is bubbling up once more after a positive World Cup and with the opening of the January market now just days away.
Rice has rejected numerous new contract offers from West Ham and his current deal is due to expire in the summer of 2024, only heightening speculation that his time at the London Stadium is nearing an end.
Recent reports have suggested that Chelsea are now ahead of Manchester United in the race to sign a long-term target whom they initially released from their own academy as a teenager back in 2014, reuniting him with long-time best friend Mason Mount.
While West Ham are surely unlikely to sanction such a major exit mid-season, especially with David Moyes under pressure and the club entering the post-World Cup Premier League restart sitting just two places and one point above the relegation zone after a hugely disappointing opening to the campaign, their inability to get Rice to commit his long-term future to the club will only serve to add fuel to rumours that he will move on in the summer.
However, Moyes has left Chelsea and any other potential suitors in no doubt that the Hammers will fight hard to keep their star talent, though admitted that West Ham will struggle to match the player’s lofty ambitions in the short-term.
“He wants to win and play for a really good side which is going to give him the opportunity to do so. We hope that we can reach the Champions League. It is looking difficult at this time,” Moyes told The Times.
"But we’re not just going to roll over and let Dec walk out of the building, that is for sure. It is going to be a big fight. I like it because he wants to challenge himself and he wants to play in the big games and be a top player. I don’t think you’re ever going to hold anybody back from having those ambitions.
“He played as well as anybody and he was exceptional at the World Cup. For a young player he really takes on responsibility. You think about how he is going to be in another four or five years, how he will mature and improve as a player and a leader. All those things are all to come and it’s all ahead of him.”
