West Ham chairman David Sullivan has confirmed that Arsenal target Declan Rice has played his last game for the club, though says there have been no official bids for the midfielder yet.
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The 24-year-old lifted the Europa Conference League trophy on Wednesday night in Prague after Jarrod Bowen’s late strike secured a 2-1 victory over Italian side Fiorentina.
That match is set to be Rice’s last in the claret and blue shirt of West Ham, with Arsenal readying a £90million opening bid while Manchester United and Bayern Munich are also both interested.
Now Sullivan has confirmed that West Ham will not stand in Rice’s way this summer and they are already thinking about replacements.
Asked whether the Europa Conference League victory over Fiorentina was Rice’s last game for the club, Sullivan told talkSPORT: ‘I think it has to be.
‘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.
‘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.’
Asked if West Ham have received any official proposals yet, Sullivan continued: ‘No, but I think the offers will start to come today.
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‘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.’
Arsenal are expected to table a club-record bid worth £90m for Rice in the coming days, though the east London side are hoping to exact a fee in excess of the £100m Manchester City paid for Jack Grealish two years ago.
Manchester United are also keen, though are currently prioritising a move for Chelsea contract rebel Mason Mount, while Rice has spoken to Bayern Munich boss Thomas Tuchel about a potential move to Germany.
Quadri Olaitan is a journalist and contributor to Freelanews.com, covering news, public affairs, and human-interest stories.
