Premier League giants Chelsea, Manchester United and Liverpool are on red alert as West Ham United star Declan Rice’s valuation has dropped to £50 million.
According to an exclusive report from 90 min, Premier League clubs could be in for an exciting transfer battle for Declan Rice this summer. The West Ham United midfielder is widely expected to leave the club after the end of the season, with the Hammers now lowering their asking price to £50 million in light of the current pandemic situation.
Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City Manchester United are believed to be the clubs who have expressed their desire to sign Rice this summer. The transfer saga is firmly poised, however, with the player’s family reportedly exploring the amount of first-team chances the interested parties could offer. The midfielder is also keen on moving to a club where he can win silverware.
Although no club is definitely leading the chase to sign Rice, Chelsea do have the advantage as the father of the West Ham star is reportedly a season ticket holder at Stamford Bridge. In addition, the Blues see the Englishman as their long-term solution to the centre-back problem, even though the player currently plays as a midfielder at West Ham.
Even Manchester City have offered Rice the proposition, with the player’s father even urging him to explore playing other positions. But, on the flip side, Liverpool and Manchester United are content in assigning Rice his preferred holding midfield role.
It is hardly surprising either, as the Reds do indeed lack a proper long-term alternative for Jordan Henderson while James Milner is in the final stage of his career. In addition, Georginio Wijnaldum has been linked with a move to Barcelona, making Rice a viable target for Liverpool.
As for Manchester United, they are likely to consider the 22-year-old as an ideal replacement for the ageing Nemanja Matic. So, upon his potential arrival at Old Trafford, we can expect Rice to operate alongside Fred in the double pivot next season.
Things do get a bit more complicated at Chelsea as they already have two genuine holding midfielders in Jorginho and N’Golo Kante. The West Ham starlet, therefore, can only hope to emerge as a long-term replacement for ageing centre-back Thiago Silva. It could be a risky move given the fact that the English international has barely played at centre-back lately.
At the end of the day, a lot could depend on how each of these four clubs fare during the second half of the campaign. Chelsea, in particular, simply have no option but to qualify for the Champions League while defending champions Liverpool are starting to wither, whereas Manchester United lead the title race. It all points to an exciting four-way transfer battle in the summer.
