Krishnan Sreekumar
West Ham United demand British record fee for midfielder Declan Rice as Manchester United circle for England star
According to the Daily Mail, Manchester United may have to shell out a British transfer record fee for West Ham United star Declan Rice if they want to secure his services in the summer to bolster their squad.
Rice came through the Chelsea academy and was released as a teenager, before being snapped up by West Ham, where he made his way through their youth teams to establish himself as a first-team star for the Hammers.
He has arguably been one of the best players for David Moyes’ side over the past couple of seasons, with his shifts in midfield garnering attention from all over the Premier League, as they sniff around for the 23-year-old.
His performances on the pitch for the London side have propelled him to international stardom as well, with Rice now a key member of the midfield for the England national team, where he nearly led them to a Euro 2020 final trophy last summer.
Man United leading the race
United are said to be leading the transfer race to sign Rice at the end of the season, in an attempt to find an ideal replacement for Paul Pogba, who is set to depart Manchester for a second time on a free transfer in the summer.
Despite leading the race, the Red Devils will need to shell out a massive £150m fee for Rice. Moyes and the West Ham board are determined not to sell the player at anything less than a British record transfer fee. In positive news, however, the midfield star is said to be interested in a move to Old Trafford.
There can be no surprise about Man United’s interest in Rice, apart from the seeming departure of Pogba from the Theatre of Dreams at the end of the season. The Englishman has been one of the standout midfielders in the English top-flight, driving the Hammers on in their bid to get a European place next term.
This season as well, he has been a key component of the West Ham side fighting it out in the Europa League and recently progressing to the quarterfinals of the competition. His stock in Europe is sure to rise after this campaign, especially if the Hammers end up going all the way in the Europa League.
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The midfield has long been a problem for United, with hardly any big names or capable players of consistently performing day in and day out for the team. Fred, Scott McTominay, and Nemanja Matic have all been underwhelming in the middle of the pitch, and so a midfield reinforcement is necessary.
The Red Devils have deep pockets to afford Rice in the summer, although it remains to be seen if they splash that kind of cash on the Englishman. With a new manager incoming, perhaps they would like to utilise that amount on other transfer targets that the new permanent boss has.
