Midfield destroyer rated at £100m teases Man Utd, Chelsea after turning down two contract offers
England star Declan Rice has put Manchester United and Chelsea on alert, with a report claiming that the West Ham star has turned down two new contract offers.
The defensive midfielder has long been linked with a move to the Hammers’ Premier League rivals, having impressed at the London Stadium since bursting onto the scene in 2017. Indeed, a switch to Stamford Bridge would see Rice go full circle, having started his career in the academy at Chelsea.
An exclusive in the Daily Telegraph claims that United are ready to test West Ham with a swap proposal. The report states that Jesse Lingard will be offered in part-exchange for the 22-year-old.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer wants Rice to strengthen United’s spine, with the Hammers star a close friend of Red Devils skipper Harry Maguire.
As for Chelsea, Thomas Tuchel is reportedly a big fan of Rice’s versatility. The Blues boss sees him as an ideal replacement for Jorginho, who is being linked with a Serie A return.
Manchester City were also known admirers, but with Fernandinho signing a new one-year deal they have been ruled out.
For their part, West Ham are still holding out for £100million for arguably their star man. However, the report adds that Rice will be unhappy if any bids of around £60m are rejected – especially as he cost the Hammers nothing when he signed.
Rice is currently with England preparing for Saturday’s Euro 2020 quarter-final with Ukraine. But any more performances like the one he put in against Germany are likely to hike his price tag.
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United turn down Milan defender proposal
Meanwhile, Manchester United have knocked AC Milan back in their attempts to take Diogo Dalot on loan for another season, according to reports.
Dalot joined United from Porto in 2018, but only made 20 Premier League appearances across his first two seasons. Consequently, the club let him leave for Milan on loan in the 2020-21 season. The move benefited the full-back, who made 21 appearances in Serie A and 12 in cup competitions.
Now, a decision will be made over his future. Milan would be happy to take him back, but United still have him under contract until 2023.
Ole Gunnar Solksjaer is hoping to have another right-back at his disposal next season. He wants more from Aaron Wan-Bissaka in an attacking sense, but could convert his role to a more defensive one. In that case, a more forward-thinking option would be needed at full-back.
Kieran Trippier is their top target to fill that gap in the squad, although he will be hard to prise away from La Liga champions Atletico Madrid.
That may be part of the reason why Man Utd have decided against loaning out Dalot again. According to Calciomercato, they have rejected a proposal from Milan to take him on temporary terms for another season, but this time with an option to buy.
It seems United are waiting to see if they sign anyone else in his position. If not, there is still a chance they could reintegrate him into the first-team fold.
Dalot is due to have talks with Solskjaer about his future once pre-season training begins. He will be a part of United’s group for the summer, but there will still be questions of his future.
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