Manuel Pellegrini
According to the Mirror, West Ham United are set to offer midfielder Declan Rice an improved contract but the two parties are yet to reach an agreement as far as wages are concerned.
Rice, who currently earns £3,000-a-week, has been offered improved terms which will see him earn a basic £15,000-a-week and the figure is supposed to increase to £20,000-a-week once he makes 15 Premier League starts. But the young Irishman has demanded a more significant hike in his wages and wants £30,000-a-week.
As a result, the club are hesitant to meet his demands and talks of a new contract have stalled. But West Ham are confident of extending the youngster’s stay at the London Stadium (h/t Mirror).
West Ham made a disastrous start to the season with four losses out of four but Manuel Pellegrini’s men turned their fortunes around with a 3-1 victory over Everton and held Chelsea to a goalless draw last weekend. The Hammers have a lot of positives to take from the past couple of games and they must maintain their newly-found form when they host Manchester United this weekend.
West Ham weren’t outrightly poor in the first four defeats but they had plenty of room for improvements. Manuel Pellegrini splashed money and bolstered the squad with as many as nine players in the summer. Although the new acquisitions did the club a world of good by boosting their squad depth, the new players struggled to combine together as a team.
Having new recruits in all areas of the pitch backfired to a large extent and the players looked like a bunch of individuals playing without a concrete game plan.
As evident from the first four games, West Ham struggled defensively and the introduction of too many new faces in the backline meant there was absolutely no communication or understanding amongst the defenders. West Ham’s midfield general, Mark Noble, was out with an injury and the Hammers failed to stem the flow of attacks from the centre of the park.
Although Marko Arnautovic and Felipe Anderson showed some signs of promise up front and scored a few goals, the Hammers found it difficult to keep the opposition at bay and conceded as many as 10 goals in the first four games.
Pellegrini had to ring the changes and experiment with the team dynamics to improve the results. Subsequently, he decided to field Declan Rice, 19, in central midfield against an Everton side that boasted of some quality attackers in their ranks. The gamble paid off and Rice did not disappoint his manager. The youngster has had a massive impact on the team and his presence has gone a long way in changing the entire complexion of the outfit.
The 19-year-old has proved his worth as a versatile asset to the Hammers. Even though he is a defender by trade, he has fared exceptionally well in the defensive midfield position. Rice has provided that much-needed stability to the midfield and has plugged the holes to stem the flow of attacks which, in turn, has eased the pressure on the defenders.
The manager deployed Rice to sit deep in the midfield and shield the rearguard and the Irishman has obliged with some crunching challenges and superb interceptions to break up the play. Furthermore, Rice has shown the ability to keep the ball moving in the midfield with his impressive range of passing.
His towering presence in central midfield has not only pushed the defenders to get their act together but has also allowed Pedro Obiang to play a more advanced role. In Obiang and Noble, Rice has found perfect partners who complement him well by working in tandems.
Hence, Declan Rice has shown strong signs of excellence and has been the key to West Ham’s resurgence in the Premier League. His wonderful displays wouldn’t have eluded the attention of the big guns in the Premier League and West Ham should offer him an improved contract soon to avoid any uncertainty over his future.