Manchester United

Manchester United: Mark Goldbridge claims Declan Rice will snub Red Devils

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Image for Manchester United: Mark Goldbridge claims Declan Rice will snub Red Devils

The United Stand presenter Mark Goldbridge has claimed that Declan Rice will snub Manchester United this summer if Chelsea join the race to sign the England international. 

Rice, who used to play for Chelsea’s youth academy and joined West Ham’s academy in 2014 before signing his first professional deal in 2015, has attracted much speculation about his future at club level, with both clubs seemingly having an interest in the player.

Former Chelsea boss Frank Lampard was supposedly keen on bringing Rice back to Stamford Bridge last summer, however, a deal was never concluded.

Although United continued to be linked with a big-money deal for the defensive midfielder, Goldbridge has claimed that Rice would be in favour of a move to west London instead, claiming that he’s known since February that Rice’s preference is Chelsea. This is what he had to say on the speculation following Fabrizio Romano’s claim that Chelsea are interested in the England midfielder:

“This is bad news if you want Declan Rice. I’m a fan of Declan Rice. I think he’d be perfect for Manchester United, but I know people who are close to that situation and have been close to that situation a lot longer.

“I’ve been told this since February, that Declan Rice wants to go to Chelsea; he desperately wants to go to Chelsea. And if Chelsea bid for him and Manchester United bid for him, he will go to Chelsea and he will tell West Ham that he wants to go to Chelsea.”

TIF Thoughts on Declan Rice supposedly favouring Chelsea…

As Rice was on the books of Chelsea from a very young age, it may make sense for him to go back to Chelsea as he may feel like he has unfinished business there, or even a point to prove to those who decided to release him at the age of 14.

Given the state of Chelsea at the moment, having recently won the Champions League and qualified for next season’s competition, it would arguably make Chelsea seem like a very attractive option for, not only for Rice, but any footballer.

Therefore, Goldbridge – or rather his informants – may be on to something with the theory over Rice’s future, though only time will tell as to whether these claims come to fruition.

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