West Ham United: Stuart Pearce claims Declan Rice won’t leave in January

TalkSport pundit and former Hammers assistant coach Stuart Pearce has claimed that Declan Rice won’t leave West Ham United this winter – but he doesn’t owe them anything ahead of an expected summer move. 

There has been plenty of talk regarding the England man’s future of late, and the player himself only added fuel to the fire with his recent comments to the press.

While doing media duty for the Three Lions at the World Cup, he spoke about his ambition to play in the Champions League one day. Trusted transfer guru Fabrizio Romano shared his quotes on Twitter, adding that Rice is expected to leave West Ham in 2023.

And while speaking about it on TalkSport, Pearce said he doesn’t think the midfielder will be off in the new year, but suggested that the player – who worked under the ex-England defender during his time at the London Stadium – had earned the right to move on to bigger things.

Indeed, he explained: “Listen, he owes West Ham absolutely nothing. He’s been brilliant. He’s driven them to two European campaigns. 

“I don’t think he’ll be moving anytime soon – and when I say ‘anytime soon’, not before next summer; that certainly won’t be the case.

“If England go a long way in this tournament, he’s putting himself in the shop window all the time, which is a good thing – you want your players to call attention from elsewhere.”

TIF Thoughts on Declan Rice and West Ham…

As of yet, it remains unclear as to where exactly Rice will end up. However, top Premier League clubs such as Chelsea, Manchester United, Liverpool and Manchester City have all been reportedly keen on him.

Still only 23 years of age, the midfielder has already established himself as a key part of Gareth Southgate’s plans and has been a starter for England throughout their World Cup campaign so far.

The further England go in Qatar, the more praise Rice is likely to get. However, if Pearce is correct and an exit won’t happen this winter, West Ham fans can certainly be glad of that.

After all, their poor league form has them sitting just two places above the bottom three and a possible relegation battle would be particularly daunting if they had to take it on without their captain.