According to Sunday Times journalist Duncan Castles, West Ham United midfielder Declan Rice has asked for a move to Chelsea this summer transfer window.
The England international emerged as the Hammers’ Player of the Year after featuring in every minute of the 2019-20 Premier League campaign, but it appears that the lure of Champions League football is attracting him to the Stamford Bridge outfit.
Rice wants to play European football and West Ham aren’t able to offer that at the moment after fighting to avoid relegation for the majority of the just concluded campaign.
While manager David Moyes wants to build his team around the 21-year-old, there are no guarantees that the London Stadium outfit will be challenging for a top-six finish anytime soon.
Rice was released by Chelsea as a schoolboy, but they are now keen to bring him back and could play him in central defence after their struggles at the back in recent seasons.
The West Ham star can play at centre-back and as a defensive midfielder, and the versatility will come handy in the west London club should he move in the coming weeks.
The likes of Manchester United and Manchester City were linked with Rice last summer, and he could finally get that big move this year.
He won’t come cheap, though, and Chelsea will have to pay big money to get their hands on one of the best holding midfielders in the English top-flight.
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