David Moyes has admitted that there is “a good chance” Declan Rice will leave West Ham this summer, with the club putting recruitment plans in place should the captain make a bumper move to a Premier League giant.
England star RIce is valued at north of £100m by West Ham but with one year left on his contract he is expected to depart the Hammers at the end of a difficult domestic campaign that could still end with a trophy in the Europa Conference League.
Arsenal are the leading contenders to secure the 24-year-old’s signature, with Manchester United among a host of others showing some interest. And while Moyes said he would love for the central midfielder to remain there is an acceptance that the attraction of Champions League clubs may prove irresistible.
“We honestly hope he stays,” Moyes said. “We'd love for him to be a West Ham player but we are aware that might not be the case at the end of the season. So that's one of the scenarios around plans. There are plans that we have Dec here but we're also fully aware there is a good chance we won't have him.”
Should Rice remain, Moyes does not envisage a busy transfer window. The manager said planning has been complicated by their surprise relegation battle, which was all but ended after last Sunday's win over Manchester United. Last summer's addition of nine players, costing more than £160m, was seen as too much change for the Scot.
He added: "The planning has been put on the back burner. It's always been to make sure you're a Premier League club. Your planning will go completely if you weren't. A lot of it will only start to go into place once we've realised we have kept our Premier League place. We're watching a lot of players, a lot of games, doing a lot of scouting but the truth is our focus has been on staying in the Premier League."
In terms of whether he expects big moves or mild tinkering, Moyes added: "I'd hope not as much work as last summer. We brought in a big number, nine in total, which is more than you'd more than ideally want to bring in. I see more tinkering going on. I don't see huge stuff getting done at the moment. I see it more as a change here and there but not loads of work."
