Declan Rice appears to be content with life at West Ham, according to transfer insider Dean Jones.
Last year The Telegraph reported that former Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel was interested in bringing Rice to Stamford Bridge, just like the man he succeeded in west London, Frank Lampard, who made the midfielder the top target at the club.
The 23-year-old was constantly linked with a move away from West Ham this summer with Manchester United and Manchester City both thought to be plotting a move.
However, it was previously reported that Rice himself would prefer a transfer to his boyhood club Chelsea, having also told ESPN before that he has an “urgent” desire to play Champions League football, which would make a transfer in the future seemingly inevitable.
But for now, Jones has insisted that officials at the Hammers aren’t concerned about their captain for the time being.
He told GIVEMESPORT: “For now, I mean, West Ham are very confident about the place that Rice is in. He’s knuckling down and he trusts the process. He knows that any move for him will come along at the moment in which he actually needs it.”
Transfer guru Fabrizio Romano has claimed that Rice was ‘simply untouchable’ during the summer but it does look as if he is destined for a move away from east London in the not-too-distant future.
Described as ‘generational talent’ by The Athletic journalist Roshane Thomas, it is evident why Chelsea have a vested interest in the 2021/22 Hammer of the Year.
With both N’Golo Kante and Jorginho in the final year of their contracts, the Blues’ midfield is in need of a refresh.
Rice himself is contracted in Stratford until 2024 with the option of a further year and West Ham are in a strong negotiating position having already placed a £150m price tag on their most valuable asset’s head, so it will be interesting to see if indeed Chelsea can win the race to secure his services and if they will meet the Irons’ demands.
