Declan Rice Next Club Odds: Will The West Ham Captain Seal A Move In The Summer?
West Ham captain Declan Rice is poised to move to a bigger club when the Premier League transfer window opens this summer.
Online bookmakers make Arsenal the favourites to snap him up, but the Gunners could face fierce competition from several elite rivals.
Rice has established himself as one of the finest holding midfielders in the business over the past few years, but he wants to test himself at a higher level.
“One hundred percent, I want to play in the Champions League,” he said during a press conference earlier this season.
“You only get one career and at the end you want to look back at what you’ve won and the biggest games you’ve played in.”
As such, it could be difficult for the struggling Hammers to hang onto their talismanic midfielder, who is a mainstay in the England team.
He reportedly has a gentleman’s agreement in place to move on in the summer, and these are the leading contenders to capture his signature:
Arsenal
The Gunners have emerged as the frontrunners to sign Rice after surging to the top of the Premier League table.
Their greatest strength this season has arguably been a midfield trio of Thomas Partey, Granit Xhaka and Martin Odegaard.
However, Partey and Xhaka will turn 30 and 31 respectively this summer, and manager Mikel Arteta may be keen to bring in a younger player to anchor the midfield.
He will also need reinforcements if Arsenal are to sustain a challenge in the Premier League and the Champions League, and Rice could be the perfect addition to his squad.
Rice has already spoken of his admiration for Arsenal’s quality this season, and he has been heavily linked with a move to the club.
He has seen the impact that Arteta has had on players such as Xhaka, Odegaard, Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli, and he believes that the Spaniard could unlock his potential.
Some UK bookmakers will only go to 11/10 on Rice moving to Arsenal in the summer transfer window, but you can grab a market leading 6/4 at Unibet.
Chelsea
Rice spent seven years learning his trade as a member of Chelsea’s academy before the club decided to release him in 2014.
Their loss was West Ham’s gain, as the Hammers quickly brought the prodigiously talented 14-year-old to East London, where he continued his development.
The rest is history: Rice broke into the Hammers’ first team at the age of 18, and he is now the youngest captain in the Premier League, with a valuation of around £100m.
Chelsea have tried to bring him back to Stamford Bridge in the past, but West Ham have always rebuffed their overtures. It has always seemed his most natural destination, as he is settled in London and he remains good friends with Blues playmaker Mason Mount.
However, Arsenal’s renaissance has put them in the driving seat, leaving Chelsea as the 6/1 second favourites with BetVictor.
The club could face Financial Fair Play restrictions too, so they have fallen behind Arsenal in this race.
However, Chelsea pipped the Gunners to Mykhailo Mudryk’s signature in the January transfer window, so odds of 6/1 on them luring Rice back to west London look interesting.
Man Utd
Signing Rice would represent a major coup for Man Utd manager Erik ten Hag, who is bidding to rebuild the team with energetic youngsters.
Casemiro has seriously bolstered their midfield after signing from Real Madrid in the summer, but the 30-year-old Brazilian international is not a long-term solution.
He has also missed many games through suspension this season, and United have looked a little lightweight in his absence.
Rice could slot in alongside Casemiro, or he could play next to Christian Eriksen or Fred when the former Real Madrid man is absent.
He only just turned 24 in January, and he could lead the United midfield for the next eight or nine years if ten Hag can persuade him to move to Old Trafford.
The Red Devils are currently on course to secure a place in next season’s Champions League, which could bolster their chances of luring Rice to the Theatre of Dreams.
They are now third favourites with football betting sites at 10/1 to sign Rice, which would see him link up with international teammates such as Marcus Rashford and Luke Shaw.
However, it is worth noting that United were priced at 3/1 to sign Rice a few months ago, so there is now a lot more value on offer in this market.
Man City
Man City appear to be well stocked in midfield, but they have a habit of seizing the most talented English players, so they are contenders for Rice’s signature.
They are now 10/1 with Parimatch, which leaves them level with United in the race for the West Ham captain.
Pep Guardiola is not short of midfielders, with Rodri, Kalvin Phillips, Ilkay Gundogan and Bernardo Silva all happy to play in a deep-lying role.
However, there is talk of Gundogan and Silva moving on in the summer, with both men linked to Barcelona, so City could move for Rice to shore up the midfield.
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Liverpool
Liverpool are next in the betting at 11/1 with BetUK to bolster their struggling midfield with the West Ham skipper in the summer.
Fabinho has excelled for the past five years in the Reds’ engine room, but his form has started to wane, while Jordan Henderson also appears to be on his last legs.
Meanwhile, Naby Keïta and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain will leave the club in the summer, leaving Jurgen Klopp desperate for midfield reinforcements.
The Reds have been linked with Jude Bellingham, Moises Caicedo, Youri Tielemans and several other stars as they bid to improve their fortunes following a difficult campaign.
However, they would be hard pressed to find a better option than Rice to tighten things up in the middle of the park.
Their chances may be hampered if they fail to qualify for the Champions League next season, as Rice has made it clear that he is determined to test himself at the highest level.
Yet the Reds can point to a seriously impressive record in Europe’s top competition, having reached the final in three of the past six seasons.
Klopp needs to rebuild his team, and Rice may be swayed by the prospect of leading the club into a new era, so they remain interesting contenders in this market.
Newcastle
The in-form Magpies are 11/1 with betting apps to bring Rice to St James’ Park in the summer transfer window.
That would have been unthinkable a couple of years ago, but Newcastle are resurgent since the Saudi takeover towards the end of 2021.
If they can secure a top-four finish this term, they will be in an even better position to attract the world’s best players to Tyneside.
However, they may have more pressing concerns than signing a holding midfielder.
After all, Newcastle boast the best defensive record in the division this season, which is largely down to the superb performances of Bruno Guimaraes.
Their struggles have come in attack, as they have scored fewer goals than the other teams in the top eight.
For that reason, they may focus their efforts on forwards, playmakers and wingers in the summer transfer window instead of pursuing Rice.
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