A jubilant Declan Rice left the BBC having to apologise for bad language in an X-rated interview during West Ham’s incredible trophy parade on Thursday.
Thousands of euphoric Hammers fans lined the streets of east London as their claret-and-blue heroes returned victorious from Prague following a dramatic late 2-1 Europa Conference League final victory over Fiorentina sealed by Jarrod Bowen’s winning goal, with the trophy shown off on an open-top bus tour.
The atmosphere across the route was remarkable, with fans chanting throughout as the players, manager David Moyes and his backroom staff and the likes of director of football Mark Noble all revelled in West Ham’s first major trophy win since 1980 and first on the continent for some 58 years.
It was a particularly poignant success for captain Rice, who is widely expected to move on this summer as Arsenal prepare a club-record £90million bid for his services.
And the England midfielder - who joined Billy Bonds and Bobby Moore as the only skippers ever to deliver a major trophy for the club - could not contain his emotions as he paid homage to West Ham and their fans on another unforgettable night.
“I’m lost for words,” he said at the Old Town Hall in Stratford. “You hear Billy Bonds, Bobby Moore and now to lift that trophy for this football club… it’s not hit me yet to be honest but it is so f*****g special. I’m lost for words, it’s just incredible.”
The BBC apologised for Rice’s accidental use of bad language on live TV, quickly having to do so again as the 24-year-old continued to praise what he described as the greatest fanbase on the planet.
“These are the best fans in the world for me,” Rice continued. “Two years in a row we’ve had European competitions, they travel all round the world to watch us, pre-season, Europe and to be honest I didn’t expect this many people here tonight.
“But it is West Ham, we’re f*****g massive, ain’t we?! Yeessss!”
