West Ham legend Mark Noble has admitted that the club “ain’t got a chance” of keeping Declan Rice amid reports linking him with Liverpool and Chelsea.
Hammers standout Rice has established himself as one of the best midfielders in the Premier League over the past couple of seasons.
The 23-year-old has also made an impact for England as he was a key player for Gareth Southgate at last year’s European Championships and at this winter’s World Cup.
Frankly, West Ham have done well to keep Rice at the club as longas they have.
They managed to scare off other clubs earlier this year as they stated that a bid of £150m was needed for them to sell Rice.
But it is likely that he will move on next year with his contract due to expire in 2024. West Ham have the option to extend this deal until 2025 but it is suggested that he will cost £70m next summer.
Chelsea are known to be admirers of the midfielder and it has recently been claimed that Liverpool are also considering a move for him.
Noble has now admitted that West Ham’s rivals are “too powerful” financially so they may have to admit defeat in their attempts of keeping Rice.
“Whether you think things will get dicey at West Ham – and I don’t believe they will – we just can’t cope financially with the top teams,” Noble told The Guardian.
“We can try our hardest to recruit the best players that the top five or six don’t buy – and we might get lucky with a few that slip through the net – but you can’t compete with these teams.
“They’re financially too powerful. If a top club wants Declan Rice they’re just going to pay for him, full stop. You’ve seen it with Jack Grealish, with the best players.
“If the top boys want them, we ain’t got a chance.”
Noble retired earlier this year and in 2023 he is set to become West Ham’s new sporting director.
He has suggested that it is difficult for West Ham to attract the best players in the world as they “can’t afford to buy who we want”.
“You’ve got the top six, maybe even seven in the Premier League,” Noble added.
“You’ve got two or three in the German league and the same in the Spanish league. In the French league, obviously you’ve got PSG [owned by Qatar] and one or two others. So we’re not in that market because the Champions League is a massive draw for players.
“We need to be in the market of probably 25 teams across Europe. Maybe from fourth to eighth in the Spanish league, the same in the…
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