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Declan Rice: To sell, or not to sell

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Roar Rookie
30th April, 2019
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West Ham have been living beyond their means after Manuel Pellegrini dropped a truckload of cash last summer. So, is it time to clear of the decks?

Players like Felipe Anderson, Issa Diop and Fabian Balbuena, given this season to settle, will be a lot more consistent in the coming campaign.

The big issue facing the Irons is the striking options, or perhaps lack thereof.

Andy Carroll will be let go, the 30-year-old has never really been able to recapture the form that saw him become a Toon hero with the Magpies. Sadly, when he is injury free and confident, he is almost unstoppable.

Javier Hernandez seems to be Valencia bound and question marks still linger around maverick front-man Marko Arnautovic. Will he stay, will he go? Perhaps it may be time for the club to accept an offer to bring in some cash.

This leaves Michail Antonio, a returning Andriy Yarmolenko and Lucas Perez as the only main attacking options – not sustainable for the rigours of a Premier League season where East London fans are desperately craving European football again.

Names being thrown around include Edin Dzeko, Daniel Sturridge, Maxi Gomez and – bizarrely enough – a £20 million bid for Boca Juniors’ Dario Benedetto, a soon to be 29-year-old striker coming off an ACL injury without any European experience.

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In order to raise some big funds, does West Ham offload midfield young gun Declan Rice? If you believe the smoke signals, Manchester United and Real Madrid are both preparing to present godfather offers to the newly capped England 20-year-old.

West Ham should be trying to hold on to these Academy graduates, but, with seemingly enough cover in the midfield and given the current financial climate, it might be the right move to sell Rice and bring in a couple of striking options – and one more defender.

Rice has had a standout season and selling him now should bring in around £60 million – more than enough to bring in Gomez, as well as another veteran to provide proven experience such as Dzeko, who we know has enjoyed previous success with Pellegrini.

With rumours circulating that David Sullivan is only offering a £25 million spend this summer, it might have to be ‘sell, sell, sell’ to rejuvenate this Hammers squad.

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