MY ACCOUNT
Manchester United desperately need a high-class holding midfielder — and they will come up against one in Declan Rice this weekend.
Rice, 23, is one of the best in the Premier League and is the beating heart of West Ham’s impressive side.
He will not be going anywhere this January, yet the Hammers will know there is plenty to do if they want to retain him for the long term.
Ahead of Saturday’s trip to Old Trafford, we take a look at what the Irons need to achieve in the coming months to keep their talisman at the club.
Happy Hammers
There is no doubting Rice loves West Ham — and they love him back.
The Kingston-born midfielder was released by Chelsea as a youngster but found a home in East London and he will be wary of giving that up.
With the full support of boss David Moyes and given the extra responsibility as captain in Mark Noble’s absence, there are plenty of reasons for Rice to be in good spirits.
He said: “I’m really lucky that I’ve got him [Moyes] as a manager and that we’ve got a really close relationship.
“Captaining West Ham in Europe is a really special moment every time, putting the armband on and walking out with thousands of us in the stadium.”
Forward-thinking
Rice just keeps on getting better for the Hammers — it is why speculation about his future is never far away.
There have never been questions about Rice’s defensive ability in the holding role.
No midfielder has won the ball back for his team in their defensive third more than Rice (72) and only three midfielders have won it back more times in the middle third (85).
The England regular has also made the most interceptions (36) of any midfielder in the Premier League this term.
But it is his progression with the ball that has really taken his game to the next level — driving runs through the middle and the calmness to pick out the right pass.
Rice has attempted the fifth-most passes of players in his position and over 90% find the intended target — also the fifth-best in the league.
That improvement with the ball at his feet has seen him set up four Premier League goals already this campaign.
European aspirations
That is why the Premier League’s biggest clubs continue to be linked with a big-money move for Rice.
The Hammers would want north of £100million for a man who is virtually irreplaceable as it stands.
But there is a school of thought that he needs to move on if he wants to reach the next level.
Speaking in October, Gary Neville said: “He’ll have to transfer to a team in the Champions League.
“Where he plays in midfield. Where there’s high expectations. Where he’s playing against teams that are dropping deep every week and there will be different asks.
“A holding midfield player in a top team, he definitely could do it. If you look at Liverpool and Fabinho in the next couple of years.
“And Manchester United with Fred and Matic. McTominay might be there for a couple of years but generally there are some jobs coming up.
“Jorginho, how long will he be at Chelsea? And Fernandinho at City as well. He will go to one of those top clubs and he’s got to prove he can deliver that jump.”
If Moyes can keep the East Londoners in Europe and even guide them deep into this season’s Europa League knockout phase, it would go far in keeping the list of suitors at bay.
Strength in depth
Speaking early this month, Moyes said: “Declan’s under a long contract here, under a long length of contract. So from that point of view we’ve not got a big panic on.
“We will keep Declan as long as we possibly can, we’ve no intentions of selling him. If we ever had to, I’ve said already many, many times what it would be — shoot to the moon.”
If the Hammers are serious about keeping Rice and potentially challenging for a Champions League spot, they need to invest.
Defeat to Leeds was not the first poor home performance of the season and it is clear that a couple more players are needed if they are going to juggle domestic and European games.
Rice knows it. Last year, he said: “If we can add one or two in January and really look towards the European games coming up, when we’ll probably play a big side, we can go far.”
Signings of intent this month — in the calibre of former loanee Jesse Lingard — would be a great starting point for the Irons.
There is no doubt, keeping Rice sweet is key to their success.
