Declan Rice

[Blues Forever 1,232]

23 minutes ago, Marvin123 said:

Isn't domestic transfers until mid October?

Only for a transfer between PL and EFL or below.

[OneMoSalah 8,883]

Ruben or Ross plus Rudiger and 30m for Rice. Would be a decent deal in all and all. Still dont think Rice is or ever will be a 80m player but hey ho. 

[Artandur 939]

1 hour ago, OneMoSalah said:

Ruben or Ross plus Rudiger and 30m for Rice. Would be a decent deal in all and all. Still dont think Rice is or ever will be a 80m player but hey ho. 

Ross is gone and i doubt either Ruben or Rüdiger are very hyped about playing for West Ham... 

[Jase 43,479]

Maybe the club will somehow manage to pull off this deal by the end of the transfer window but it is almost bewildering that we do not seem to have a Plan B or an alternative option for the defensive midfielder position. If we end up not getting Rice, then what? Are we just gonna be happy with a half decent-half arsed midfield for another season again? Seems daft that we are seemingly putting all eggs into the Rice basket. 

[King Kante 1,643]

1 hour ago, Jason said:

Maybe the club will somehow manage to pull off this deal by the end of the transfer window but it is almost bewildering that we do not seem to have a Plan B or an alternative option for the defensive midfielder position. If we end up not getting Rice, then what? Are we just gonna be happy with a half decent-half arsed midfield for another season again? Seems daft that we are seemingly putting all eggs into the Rice basket. 

I imagine the club have irons in the fire, Rice does seem first choice but it seems to me that there is an acknowledgement that DMF is needed. Further, the club are pretty good at keeping their cards close to their chest on certain deals. Ziyech, Sarr and Werner both went under the rader until done. My money is on one more signing as a minimum. 

[Jase 43,479]

Just now, King Kante said:

I imagine the club have irons in the fire, Rice does seem first choice but it seems to me that there is an acknowledgement that DMF is needed. Further, the club are pretty good at keeping their cards close to their chest on certain deals. Ziyech, Sarr and Werner both went under the rader until done. My money is on one more signing as a minimum. 

Maybe. But judging by the persistent rumors, you would think that Rice is the only defensive midfielder available in the world. It's clear that we have issues in midfield and yet despite having done well to sort out the issues at the back and in attack with new signings, we're leaving the midfield remain problematic. 

[OneMoSalah 8,883]

2 hours ago, Jason said:

Maybe the club will somehow manage to pull off this deal by the end of the transfer window but it is almost bewildering that we do not seem to have a Plan B or an alternative option for the defensive midfielder position. If we end up not getting Rice, then what? Are we just gonna be happy with a half decent-half arsed midfield for another season again? Seems daft that we are seemingly putting all eggs into the Rice basket. 

100% agree. 

Same as the John Stones situation under Jose. Which for a club of our stature, similarly like United with Sancho, is pretty pathetic - even more so if we don't get him and either go for an equivalent to a Papy signing in that position which scares me or don't get someone at all. If we cannot get him we need a reasonable plan B or plan C. Thomas Partley has a 45m release clause and is twice the player in my eyes. Plus if we do sell Jorginho we are going to need someone in this ilk to replace him who can dictate a game and play through the lines from deeper positions, Thomas is a lot better on the ball and has the physicality, mobility and tenacity you'd want from someone there I feel.

I think if is a purely defensive minded midfielder we were after, its a shame Javi Martinez is the wrong side of 30 because he could do a very good job for us for 2 seasons yet I reckon but he has only got eyes on returning to Bilbao and is probably at an age where he isn't a viable option for us - despite getting Thiago Silva who obviously is better quality but Martinez is only 32 I think and has life in him yet. Even then, Wilfried Ndidi is arguably better than Rice and a definite improvement with the ball, why haven't we been linked to him if we are after a youngish DM with PL experience and still potential to grow?

It baffles me that we seem to be so set on trying to sign only English players at a huge cost. I know we haven't just done so this window but we have signed Chilwell for a fee of over 50m. We were linked with Nick Pope, Lewis Dunk, Ben White, Jadon Sancho and Declan Rice still etc. I don't know where its coming from be it the board or the manager but there is so many better players out their for better value - some bargains perhaps if you look hard enough - that would fill some of these roles. The other side also, we urgently don't lack HG players now. Reece, Andreas, Fiyako/Fikayo - never get the spelling right -, Ben, Mason, Callum, Tammy, Billy, Ruben if he stays, that's what 9? I mean if Partley wasn't possible or Ndidi wasn't a viable option or any of the other however many DMs out there okay I can see the want for Rice but I can't believe he is a first choice and only choice for us right now - it may have worked for Chilwell but it won't necessarily work for us getting Rice, clearly the desire to leave West Ham isn't as much as it was for Ben to leave Leicester.

Its also a bit off topic but its not as if Frank can turn around and say if the seasons not gone as he'd have hoped or come January or the end of it he hasn't been backed with the players he wants or be as frustrated as he was last January at the lack of incomings. Who was the last manager to have been given a window as good as this in terms of recruitment? Jose the season we won the league with him? Even then Costa and Cesc were the only ones who played regularly along with the return of Courtois. In terms of recruitment this is our best window in years and years based on the quality we've taken in. With or without a DM. 

[Tomo 21,751]

On 01/10/2020 at 6:07 PM, Jason said:

Maybe. But judging by the persistent rumors, you would think that Rice is the only defensive midfielder available in the world. It's clear that we have issues in midfield and yet despite having done well to sort out the issues at the back and in attack with new signings, we're leaving the midfield remain problematic. 

But if he's our first choice and there's clear encouragement we can get him at some point (which there is as we've heard as much from Declan himself) doesn't it make sense to wait and take the short term hit instead of blocking a squad place?

We only need to look as recently back as January to know the potential shortfalls of panicking on a plan B, imagine where we'd be right now had we panicked and signed Gedson, Bergwijn and Dembele in January?

[oldportblue 547]

hope we don’t settle for a back-up option and instead wait to sign rice later this winter or next summer...


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[Jase 43,479]

7 hours ago, Tomo said:

But if he's our first choice and there's clear encouragement we can get him at some point (which there is as we've heard as much from Declan himself) doesn't it make sense to wait and take the short term hit instead of blocking a squad place?

We only need to look as recently back as January to know the potential shortfalls of panicking on a plan B, imagine where we'd be right now had we panicked and signed Gedson, Bergwijn and Dembele in January?

You would not be wrong there if Rice is the best defensive midfielder in the world but he isn't. It is debatable whether he is even the best option out there. Plus, it's not as if the other options are useless or that their club want to insert a buy back clause.

Take a short term hit? If West Ham don't want to sell now, what makes you think they will sell in January? If we don't get him now, we'll very likely have to wait till next summer and given our midfield problems right now, can we afford to wait until then? Are we gonna spend the next 7-8 months complaining about the stupid mistakes, the midfield setup etc over and over again and watch it cost us chances of winning games and maybe even challenge for trophies? 

How is this the same as panic buying in January? We already knew for the longest time possible that the midfield is a problem for us and we have had the whole summer to address the issue but we haven't. If we don't get anyone in now, chances are we won't buy anyone till next summer and we'll see and complain about the same old problems repeatedly over the season. 

[Tomo 21,751]

8 minutes ago, Jason said:

You would not be wrong there if Rice is the best defensive midfielder in the world but he isn't. It is debatable whether he is even the best option out there. Plus, it's not as if the other options are useless or that their club want to insert a buy back clause.

Take a short term hit? If West Ham don't want to sell now, what makes you think they will sell in January? If we don't get him now, we'll very likely have to wait till next summer and given our midfield problems right now, can we afford to wait until then? Are we gonna spend the next 7-8 months complaining about the stupid mistakes, the midfield setup etc over and over again and watch it cost us chances of winning games and maybe even challenge for trophies? 

How is this the same as panic buying in January? We already knew for the longest time possible that the midfield is a problem for us and we have had the whole summer to address the issue but we haven't. If we don't get anyone in now, chances are we won't buy anyone till next summer and we'll see and complain about the same old problems repeatedly over the season. 

He doesn't have to be the best defensive midfield player in the world and he's personally not my #1 choice as my preference is a regista but if he's been identified by the club as the long term option then we'll going to wait it out like we did the other targets.

For example there's rumours about us going in for Partey last minute, that will in my opinion be a mistake as he's use to playing two man midfield for a team that cede possesion against anyone half decent, a similar profile of player in Kante struggling to adapt from that type of football to possesion orientated game in a three man midfield is partly why we entered the market for a DM in the first place. 

[Jase 43,479]

12 minutes ago, Tomo said:

He doesn't have to be the best defensive midfield player in the world and he's personally not my #1 choice as my preference is a regista but if he's been identified by the club as the long term option then we'll going to wait it out like we did the other targets.

Pretty sure Rice is a Lampard target as opposed to the club's, going by the stories out there.

14 minutes ago, Tomo said:

For example there's rumours about us going in for Partey last minute, that will in my opinion be a mistake as he's use to playing two man midfield for a team that cede possesion against anyone half decent, a similar profile of player in Kante struggling to adapt from that type of football to possesion orientated game in a three man midfield is partly why we entered the market for a DM in the first place. 

Partey or not, it's almost irresponsible that we don't seem to have other alternatives and are throwing all the eggs into one basket. Unless West Ham get relegated, there's no guarantee either that they will change their stance on Rice next summer given he's on a long term contract there and Rice isn't even doing anything to try and force the move, regardless of what he has said in interviews etc.