Manchester United legend Gary Neville has urged Arsenal and other clubs interested in West Ham captain Declan Rice that the talented midfielder is only worth around £50million-£60 million.
football.london revealed earlier this year that the England international is the Gunners' primary transfer target ahead of the summer window and there is optimism that a deal can be done. However, there are some recent reports that have claimed that the Hammers value Rice at around £100million, a price that pundit Gary Neville has claimed is excessive.
Speaking about the 24-year-old to Sky Sports News, the former England right-back said: "I love Declan Rice, but I’ve said this for a long time about him, and Jamie Carragher will tell you so. When we do Monday Night Football and West Ham play, we always have the tactical cam, which is the high camera.
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"Obviously, Declan knows the position, but when I look at world-class holding midfielders, and players of that type, because Rice doesn’t score or assist enough goals, so you’re putting him into that category of more of a destroyer, you’ve then got to be someone who I think is highly competent on the ball and linking play, and having that knowledge of the subtleties of getting on the ball from the back four.
"I personally feel, at this moment in time, that Declan needs to go and work under a different set-up, he needs to drive forward in his career, he needs to go and play at a different club. That’s nothing against West Ham or David Moyes.
"I think he’s done a brilliant job with Declan Rice and he’s had a great few years. But for me, I wouldn’t be spending £110million or £120million on Rice if I was Manchester United this summer. I would spend £50million-£60 million on Declan Rice, but I wouldn’t spend the figures being reported because I feel in that position, I still feel like he’s got a lot of growth.
He continued: "I know Chelsea have spent [£107million] on that position [for Enzo Fernandez], but I think the holding midfield player, the player who connects the back to the front and links play, to me that feels like a cap of £50million, £60million, maybe £65million. It doesn’t feel like a £100million position. If you’re spending £100million, you’ve got to have somebody who’s scoring 25 goals and getting 10 or 15 assists.
"That’s where £100million sit for me, even though the market gets destroyed and goes up every year in each position. I just feel like, if Declan Rice can go to another club and play a couple of years somewhere, that would be great.
"I want him to have a great career and I think he’s a brilliant lad, but I agree with some of Roy (Keane)’s points that I think there’s a lot of growth, and a lot for Declan to do to get up to the levels of Casemiro, Rodri, and players at the top of the game in those positions."
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