West Ham may be facing yet another transfer window full of conjecture and speculation as they battle to stave off interest from Chelsea in Declan Rice.
The west London club’s interest in the 21-year-old was well-publicised during the summer and reputable journalist Fabrizio Romano has fuelled the fire to worry Hammers fans by claiming he is ‘convinced’ Frank Lampard will attempt to land the England midfielder in January.
Speaking on the Que Golazo Podcast, Romano said: ”At the moment, what we know is that the player still wants to join Chelsea, he loves the style of Lampard, he loves Chelsea and also his Dad is a Chelsea fan.”
Rice was a schoolboy at Stamford Bridge before moving across London to join West Ham, where he has gone on to establish himself as a first team regular.
However, the club could be preparing themselves for eye-watering bids in January as Romano added: ”Last summer, in September, when Chelsea contacted West Ham, they asked for 80 million Euros, to sell Declan Rice, that’s why Chelsea said no at this moment we can’t pay this money, let’s see in January. I’m convinced they will try again for Declan Rice in January.”
READ WEST HAM VERDICT
Any West Ham fans who thought Chelsea might look elsewhere were perhaps pulling the wool over their own eyes.
Confirmation from the likes of the trusted Romano only intensifies the belief that the Blues will be back for Rice in the future.
It remains to be seen if it will be a January swoop or whether the west Londoners will wait until the summer to make their move, as many may have hoped. Regardless of timing, the club’s hierarchy must remain steadfast in their stance, both over his availability and at worst over the fee.
