West Ham United midfielder Declan Rice has a gentleman’s agreement with the East London club amidst the interest from Chelsea and other Premier League teams. Apart from Chelsea, the Englishman is also attracting interest from the Manchester duo of Manchester United and Manchester City. British media outlet talkSPORT disclosed the presence of the gentleman’s agreement between West Ham United and Rice as it was revealed that the 23-year-old has been told to spend one more season with the Hammers before he leaves for a big transfer.
A gentleman’s agreement means a little unless it has been signed by the parties involved, but Rice would be hoping West Ham United officials keep to their end of the agreement.
Chelsea have doubts over the futures of Frenchman N’GoloKante and Italian player Jorginho in midfield, and the signing of Rice from London rivals West Ham United would be a big boost for the Blues in their quest to close the gap between them and the top two teams namely Liverpool and Manchester City. Chelsea finished third behind the two teams at the end of the final Premier League table last season, but the gap was very wide in terms of points recorded at the end of the mandatory 38 games.
On Kante and Jorginho, the two players have one year left to run on their respective contracts. French World Cup winner Kante was linked with a move to Premier League rivals Arsenal this week, while Jorginho is a long-term Juventus target.
Chelsea target Rice is an established player for club and country. He was a regular in the England midfield as they finished the Euro 2020 tournament last summer in second spot. Rice also played a prominent role for West Ham United as they reached the Europa League semifinals before being knocked out by eventual winners Eintracht Frankfurt.