David Moyes has stressed that West Ham won’t simply let sought-after star Declan Rice ‘walk out the building’ amid interest in the player from rival Premier League clubs.
The holding midfielder is out of contract in June 2024 – while the east London side have the option to extend another year on top of that.
But despite the heaps of reported interest in the England international – from the likes of Manchester United and Chelsea – Hammers boss Moyes has said that the club are prepared to fight to ensure they get the right price.
READ MORE: Declan Rice drops massive transfer hint with World Cup comments
The former Everton and Man Utd boss said of the player’s future in a press conference: “He wants to win. We are not just going to roll over and let Declan walk out the building”
“It’s going to be a big fight and I like it — because Declan wants to challenge himself and wants to play in the big games and he wants to be a top player”.
Rice has attracted the interest of a host of sides looking for a first-team central midfielder to come in.
He is often linked to his boyhood club Chelsea, who are in need of bolstering the middle of the park, and there is also interest from Man Utd.
David Moyes says West Ham won’t give up Declan Rice without a fight
Moyes wants to turn things around
West Ham have had a torrid season so far, but Moyes has said that things are in place to turn their fortunes around. He said: “We have turned everything upside down to try and see what we can do better and improve.
“But if we were going to change then it means everything we’ve done for the last two years was wrong.
“Our attacking work is going to have to score us more goals. Defensively we’ve not been too bad in the main but our attack is where we’ve been falling down.’
Rice has been instrumental for West Ham in recent years – but the lack of Champions League football has meant that he is reportedly on the lookout for greener pastures.