There appears to be little doubt now that West Ham captain, Declan Rice, has played his last game for the club, and what a way to bow out.
The midfielder led his Hammers side with aplomb as they won a tense Europa Conference League final against Italian rivals, Fiorentina.
Becoming only the third West Ham captain in history to lift a major trophy after Bobby Moore and Billy Bonds is surely the best way to bow out – as long as the east Londoners get what they want for him.
Given his skill set, Rice is bound to have a queue of takers for his services and that could see a Dutch auction break out with the player sold to the highest bidder.
Speaking on the No Tippy Tappy Football Podcast, former Leeds manager, Sam Allardyce, suggested that Rice could go to Man City rather than rumoured favourites, Arsenal.
“If he (Rice) goes there (Man City), who will be happy going there (West Ham),” Tim Sherwood asked in response.
“Kalvin Phillips? Pep (Guardiola) will give him a chance to succeed.”
As they continued discussing a Phillips switch to the London Stadium in more depth, the ex-Tottenham Hotspur manager did go on to say “Love it. Great move.”
The midfielder signed for City in a £42m move from Leeds United (Sky Sports), but hasn’t consistently hit the heights under Pep Guardiola.
Though there’s no suggestion that the club want him to leave, using him as a makeweight to tempt his England colleague to the north west could be an excellent negotiating tactic from City.
