Declan Rice was reluctant to be drawn into speculation over his next move amid reports linking him with a move to Arsenal.
The England international, 24, has been tipped to leave the London Stadium at the end of the season and has emerged as Mikel Arteta's top summer transfer target in recent weeks.
Recent reports have claimed that Arsenal planned to approach West Ham over a blockbuster deal for their talisman once they had played in the Europa Conference League final, which they won on Wednesday night. Even though the Gunners are now poised to firm up their interest, Rice was reluctant to entertain the idea of moving on in the aftermath of West Ham's big win - although he refused to rule out a move completely.
When he was asked to address the speculation over his future, he told BT Sport: "Look, at the moment there’s obviously a lot of speculation about my future. Obviously, there is interest from other clubs, that’s out there.
"But ultimately I’ve still got two years left at West Ham and I love this club, I love playing for this club. There hasn’t been anything yet so my focus is playing for West Ham, enjoying tonight, and seeing what happens.
"I’m captain of this club, I absolutely love it to pieces, I absolutely cannot speak highly enough of this place. Let’s see what happens."
Rice's comments are unlikely to deter Arsenal, though, who are still likely to approach West Ham for talks over a deal now that the Hammers' season has officially wrapped up.
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Recent reports have claimed that Arsenal have been preparing a structured proposal worth £90million for the midfielder's services - a sum that is believed to be some way short of West Ham's own valuation of Rice, which is said to be in excess of £100m.
There are other high-profile suitors in the race for Rice too: Bayern Munich have identified the Hammers academy graduate as a potential summer signing, while Manchester United are also long-term admirers of the sought-after maestro.
West Ham's triumph in the Europa Conference League means the Hammers will play in the Europa League next term, but Rice is still expected to depart in order to join a club that will be able to offer him the opportunity to play in the Champions League: something the player himself has made clear is a priority moving forward.
Mirror Football understands that Rice's preferred move would be to Arsenal, who are in the market for quality reinforcements after finishing second in the Premier League this season and pushing Manchester City close in the title race.
