West Ham owner David Sullivan has confirmed that Declan Rice has played his last game for the club after winning the Europa Conference League.
"I think it has to be [his last game]. We promised him he could go. He set his heart on going. You can't ask for a man who has committed more to us this season. In due course, he has to get on and we have to get a replacement - or several replacements," Sullivan told talkSPORT.
"It's not something we want to happen. We offered him £200,000-a-week 18 months ago. He turned it down. It's cost him £10million to stay at West Ham in that time (in lost wages). And he wants to go. You can't keep a player who doesn't want to be there.
"I think the offers will start to come today. There are three or four clubs who have shown interest, but out of respect to West Ham, while we’re still playing, you don’t make offers for players. That’s not the way decent clubs do things.”
Sullivan's comments come after Rice himself refused to bid farewell to Hammers fans following Wednesday's win over Fiorentina. The midfielder even appeared to hint that he may yet stay at the London Stadium beyond the summer.
"It's not goodbye yet, there's loads of speculation about my future and there is interest from other clubs, but look, nothing's happened. I'm a West Ham player, I've still got two years left on my contract," he told BT Sport.
"I love every minute of playing for this club and captaining this club, you can see the smile on my face. It's not about that tonight, it's about us celebrating. Let's wait and see what happens.
"My focus is playing for West Ham at the moment. I'm captain of this club and I can't speak highly enough of this place. Let's just see what happens. Let's wait and see. Who knows?
"I've given my heart playing for this club over the past six years. I'd give anything to help this club win. We've not had it easy. We've been facing relegation. To win this now, to be in that category, I don't want to say too much. I'll get too excited."
Sullivan's comments will delight club chiefs at Arsenal and Manchester United, with the Premier League duo thought to be the frontrunners for Rice's signature.
The Gunners had are set to open talks with West Ham chiefs in the coming days and weeks as they look to strike a deal. With Granit Xhaka set to leave the Emirates Stadium, Rice is thought to be Mikel Arteta's top target.
Rice broke into West Ham's first-team in 2017 and has since become one of the Premier League's best midfielders. He has also become a regular for England, starting the Euro 2020 final, and was elevated to the Hammers' captaincy after Mark Noble's retirement.
