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In recent comments made on Twitter, ExWHUemployee addressed the recent reports linking West Ham United midfielder, Declan Rice, with a move away from the Hammers this summer.

So far this season, Rice has been in rather remarkable form over his 29 Premier League appearances for David Moyes’ side, with the 22-year-old scoring one goal and providing one assist, as well as averaging a highly impressive SofaScore match rating of 7.09 – ranking him as the club’s fourth-best performer in the top flight.

As a result of these fine displays, Troy Deeney recently suggested that Rice could leave West Ham this summer, telling talkSPORT that it would take between £50 million and £60 million for Moyes to part with the defensive midfielder.

However, in reaction to Deeney’s claims, ExWHUemployee took to Twitter, stating his belief that ‘it’s not true’ that Rice is set to leave east London at the end of the season, before adding: “Not for that price, certainly.”

Transfer Tavern Take

Considering the fact that it was reported the Hammers were demanding a fee of around £80 million for Rice last summer, the fact that the midfielder is now a regular England international, as well as performing extremely well for West Ham in their push for a Champions League finish this term, it would certainly appear unlikely that the club’s asking price for the 22-year-old would have decreased over the course of this season.

In other news: West Ham are preparing a summer offer for this 16-goal £13k p/w Moyes target – find out more here!

The Danish striker made it seven goals in his last six matches to fire Erik ten Hag's side to a narrow victory against a determined Luton

Rasmus Hojlund could not score in his first 14 Premier League games but is now truly on fire and his double was enough to give Manchester United a scrappy, barely deserved 2-1 win at Luton Town.

The Dane scored for the sixth league game in a row to give United the lead after just 40 seconds, staying alert to pounce on a Luton error and calmly round goalkeeper Thomas Kaminski. In the seventh minute he knocked in an Alejandro Garnacho strike into the net with his chest to put the visitors in full command.

United could not live up to their dream start, though, and Luton captain Carlton Morris halved the deficit while the Red Devils were lucky not to concede again before the break, while Casemiro was fortunate not to be sent off.

Luton continued to pile on the pressure and United failed to take their chances on the break, with Garnacho particularly wasteful. They had to ride out a nervy few minutes, helped by the unstoppable Jonny Evans, and eventually secured a fourth consecutive league victory, taking them within three points of fifth-placed Tottenham and five of Aston Villa in fourth.

After a dire first half of the season, the hunt for Champions League football is truly on. GOAL rates Man United's players from Kenilworth Road…

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  Goalkeeper & Defence

  Andre Onana (6/10):

  Could have done more to put Morris off. His footwork helped slow the game down and ease the pressure.

  Diogo Dalot (5/10):

  Couldn't cope with Alfie Doughty for large spells and messed up a potential one-on-one with Thomas Kaminski.

  Harry Maguire (5/10):

  A bit of a wobbly performance. Late to numerous tackles and could have been booked long before he finally saw yellow. Taken off at half-time as a precaution.

  Raphael Varane (8/10):

  A highly effective last wall of defence, making block after block after Luton breached midfield and the flanks.

  Luke Shaw (6/10):

  Had some nice passages of play and put out numerous fires, including getting a booking for a meaty challenge. Taken off before half-time amid fears of another injury.

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  Midfield

  Kobbie Mainoo (8/10):

  A class act. His nimble footwork helped United play their way out of Luton's aggressive press and he also read the game superbly.

  Casemiro (5/10):

  Very fortunate not to earn another booking for taking out Barkley, with Erik ten Hag sensibly removing him at half-time. Despite his struggles against Barkley, he sparked the move for the first goal with a punt downfield, which Hojlund capitalised on.

  Bruno Fernandes (5/10):

  Made plenty of sloppy passes but worked hard to contain Luton late on and made a vital block to prevent Gabriel Osho from levelling.

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  Attack

  Alejandro Garnacho (4/10):

  Made lots of bad decisions, above all when he bungled his attempt to dribble around Kaminski. At least he got an assist.

  Rasmus Hojlund (9/10):

  That's seven goals in six matches for the Dane, who is starting to look like the true heir to Ruud van Nistelrooy – United's last proper 'fox in the box'. He showed awareness and composure for his early goal and cheekiness for his second. Also held the ball up superbly.

  Marcus Rashford (5/10):

  Some promising moments but overall a disappointment. Should have released Garnacho far earlier in the first half but made amends with a dream pass, which the Argentina international squandered.

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  Subs & Manager

  Victor Lindelof (6/10):

  Did better deputising at left-back than last week at Villa but still picked up a yellow card.

  Scott McTominay (6/10):

  Brought on at half-time and held the ball up well while working hard in defence.

  Jonny Evans (8/10):

  Outstanding when he came on, heading and booting away every ball that came his way. Also showed impressive stamina to storm forward in the last minute.

  Sofyan Amrabat (N/A):

  Brought on in the 86th minute to shore up the defence and see out the win.

  Erik ten Hag (6/10):

  His substitutes made sense and averted potential red cards but the way his side had to cling on for so much of the second half should concern him.

Zinedine Zidane has revealed that he is "a big fan" of Real Madrid sensation Jude Bellingham, as he hailed the Englishman's "incredible" performances.

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• Zidane revealed himself to be a fan of Bellingham
• English midfielder shares Zidane's famous No.5 jersey
• Has scored 20 goals already this season with Los Blancos

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  WHAT HAPPENED?

  When Bellingham moved to the Spanish capital in the summer, he decided to wear the No.5 jersey at Real Madrid, an iconic shirt previously worn by Zidane himself. While many scoffed at the daring of a 20-year-old, his performances on the pitch have silenced his critics and now the former midfield maestro himself has lavished praise on the youngster.

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• WHAT ZIDANE SAID

  During a chat with , Zidane said: "He’s an unbelievable player who does incredible things. You could have imagined what he was going to do, but he’s surpassed all the statistics with what he’s doing.

  "Don’t forget that he’s only 20 years old. He arrived at Real Madrid with a lot of desire, a lot of goals and he is setting the bar very high. He’s just showing everyone what he is and it’s great to see him like that. I’m a big fan of his and now we want him to win trophies with Real Madrid. It’s everything he wanted for himself.”

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  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Bellingham has become the poster boy of Adidas and has featured in several commercials promoting the new line of Adidas predator boots, which was once worn by Zidane. He first wore those boots against Napoli in the Champions League and also scored the second goal for his team in a 4-2 win over the reigning Serie A champions.

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• WHAT NEXT?

  Bellingham has 20 goals and eight assists to his name in his maiden campaign at the Santiago Bernabeu. He leads the goal-scoring charts in La Liga and has already surpassed Zidane's tally of most strikes in a season for the club with a brace against Barcelona earlier in October.

Mason Greenwood completing a permanent move to Spain would please La Liga president Javier Tebas, as he does not care about the forward’s past.

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• Winger taking in Spanish loan spell
• Permanent move on the cards
• La Liga president unfazed by past

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  One-cap England international Greenwood was arrested in January 2022 on suspicion of rape and sexual assault. He was suspended by Manchester United, but saw all charges against him dropped in February 2023 – eventually paving the way for a loan move to Getafe.

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  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Greenwood has impressed during a season-long loan, registering seven goals and five assists, with his exploits said to be catching the eye of Barcelona and Atletico Madrid. A permanent transfer could be on the cards for 2024, with Tebas explaining why he would be happy to see a deal pushed through.

• WHAT TEBAS SAID

  La Liga chief Tebas has told a media briefing at the Financial Times Business of Football Summit: “He’s doing really well at Getafe as a player and I hope he continues to be successful and he continues to stay in Spanish football because that’s always good for us. He is just another player. He had a past, but not a past we can do anything about. He was innocent and wasn’t condemned. We can’t be judges for everything. If we did that, we’d have no teams. I’m a lawyer, so it’s important to say he is not condemned. He was acquitted here [in the UK]. Should we have reopened the case in Spain? Do I know the case in great detail? No. Greenwood was not condemned, so I don’t care.”

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  DID YOU KNOW?

  United are expected to sanction a sale in the next transfer window, although Sir Jim Ratcliffe has left the door ajar for a return to Old Trafford. The INEOS chief has said: “It’s quite clear we have to make a decision. There is no decision that’s been made. We will make a decision, and we will justify it one way or the other. He’s on loan obviously, but he’s not the only one – we’ve got one or two footballers that we have to deal with and we have to make a decision on, so we will do that.”

AC Milan could sell their star player Rafael Leao in the summer if they receive offers in excess of €100m.

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• Milan ready to sell Leao
• Would demand transfer fee in excess of €100m
• Linked with a move to PSG and Newcastle

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  Leao, who has attracted interest from several top European sides including Paris Saint-Germain and Newcastle United, could be sold in the summer if AC Milan receives offers over €100m, according to . The Portuguese winger reportedly has a release clause of €175m in his existing contract which means that the Serie A giants won't entertain any double-digit offers.

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  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  After Kylian Mbappe communicated his decision to leave PSG as a free agent at the end of the ongoing campaign, the Ligue 1 champions are considering raiding the Italian league. Other than the Milan attacker, they have also shown interest in Inter's Lautaro Martinez and Napoli talisman Victor Osimhen.

• DID YOU KNOW?

  Leao did not have the best of starts in the ongoing 2023/24 season having scored only seven goals in 29 appearances for the club across all competitions. Nonetheless, he has age on his side and could prove to be a perfect candidate to fill Mbappe's boots at PSG.

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  WHAT NEXT FOR RAFAEL LEAO?

  The 24-year-old will be next seen in action for the Rossoneri on Sunday as they take on Monza in the Serie A. They currently find themselves third in the league, 11 points behind rivals and league leaders Inter.

Fulham could be set to allow Stefan Johansen to leave Craven Cottage this summer.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by West London Sport, who claim that Queens Park Rangers are in talks with the central midfielder regarding a permanent move to the Kiyan Prince Foundation Stadium this summer, with the 30-year-old having just one year remaining on his current deal with Fulham.

Big mistake

After allowing the £1.8m-rated midfielder to join QPR on a temporary deal in the second half of last season, Johansen went on to prove himself as a rather inspired piece of business for the Rs in his short time with Mark Warburton’s side.

Over his 21 Championship appearances at the club, the 30-year-old scored four goals, registered two assists and created two big chances for his teammates, as well as making an average of 0.8 interceptions, 1.1 tackles and 1.6 key passes per game.

These metrics saw the £8k-per-week Norway international earn a seasonal SofaScore match rating of 7.00, ranking him as Warburton’s sixth-best performer in the second tier – hugely contributing to QPR’s dramatic upturn in form since the turn of the year, a period in which the Rs ranked third in the Championship table.

As such, it is no surprise to learn that Fulham’s west London rivals are interested in a deal to bring the midfielder to the Kiyan Prince Foundation Stadium on a permanent basis in the upcoming transfer window, however, it is rather more surprising that Scott Parker’s side do not appear to be standing in their way.

With the man whom Ronny Deila dubbed an “unbelievable” player clearly demonstrating last season that he is capable of being the star of a team who were very much in title-chasing form, Johansen would appear to be a perfect fit for Parker’s side ahead of their upcoming Championship campaign, in which the Cottagers will be aiming to secure an immediate return to the Premier League.

So, exactly why the 40-year-old appears to be allowing the 30-year-old to move to one of their potential promotion rivals this summer is somewhat baffling, and is a decision that could easily come back to haunt Fulham next season.

In other news: Worrying update emerges on key Fulham figure that is sure to leave fans gutted

Paul Robinson has dropped a very worrying transfer claim involving Newcastle United and Joe Willock.

The Lowdown: Bruce wants Willock

As cited by the Evening Standard, Steve Bruce has admitted that he would ‘love’ to sign Willock on a permanent deal from Arsenal once the summer transfer window opens.

This comes off of the back of a very successful loan spell in the North East, where the central midfield player scored no fewer than eight goals in 14 games in total in the Premier League (Transfermarkt).

The Latest: Robinson on Willock

Speaking to Football Insider, Robinson, who is now a pundit after a stellar career playing for the likes of Tottenham Hotspur and Leeds United, has claimed that the Tyneside club will struggle to bring Willock back to St. James’ Park, and thinks that other teams in the top flight will be looking to sign him:

“Willock been absolutely brilliant in a team who, let’s not forget, have been struggling.

“There has been a lot of pressure on the Newcastle team because a lot of fans want Steve Bruce to be sacked. It’s not easy for a player when that’s going on during a relegation battle. Willock has handled that pressure though.

“Even if Arsenal are to let him go this summer I think they would struggle to sign him.

“His performance over the past few weeks have been fantastic and they have put him in the shop window. I think Premier League clubs will be queuing up to sign him.”

The Verdict: Newcastle may struggle

If other sides in the division come in to try and sign Willock, the Magpies may struggle to compete financially.

It has already been reported that they may have as little as £8-10m to spend on transfers once the market opens, which would not be enough to sign the 21-year-old, unless they can raise enough money from player sales.

Nonetheless, the Toon must try and break the bank if possible in order to bring Willock in permanently, given the impact that he had in his loan spell, which effectively saved them from relegation.

In other news, find out what ‘fascinating’ takeover insight a sports lawyer has dropped on arbitration here!

According to a report by reliable West Ham United insider ExWHUemployee, via West Ham Fan Zone, manager David Moyes will look to sign a centre-back, left-back and central midfielder after he has acquired a striker this summer – prompting these Irons to become ecstatic in response.

West Ham failed to sign a striker in the January transfer window as a replacement for the departed club record signing Sebastien Haller, with Moyes only having time to bring in Jesse Lingard on loan.

Therefore, one of the Hammers’ top priorities for this upcoming transfer window is a new forward to bolster Moyes’ frontline – but, according to ExWHUemployee, the Scotsman won’t stop there.

Indeed, Ex claims that the West Ham manager will look to strengthen at centre-half, the left-back position and central midfield as well as going forward – with these supporters ecstatic in response to this alleged transfer plan.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/west-ham-rumours-and-gossip-two-electric-boogaloo-copy/” title=”West Ham updates” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

Find a flavour of their best verdicts from social media down below.

West Ham fans ecstatic over Moyes transfer plan

“Ah this is just class. Love you Moyesy”

Credit: @TalkinWestHam

“Solid plan”

Credit: @Theaver78395742

“Love you Moyesy”

Credit: @TWHU77

“Said this last week to my mates, that’s exactly what we need, a centre back with some pace, a left back as cress isn’t getting any younger and Arthur isn’t the best defender, and a back up midfielder as this was proven, think we also need another keeper”

Credit: @JJ_Hannaway

“Yes to all”

Credit: @Johnath03607801

“Love that. We need a CB as I don’t think Dawson and Diop are good enough, Cresswell needs competition because Masuaku is always injured and we need a midfielder so Rice and Soucek won’t have to play early the early European and cup games”

Credit: @DanielLuker_

In other news: West Ham fans erupt over Lingard news, find out more here.

Rangers are reportedly taking an interest in Middlesbrough right-back Djed Spence ahead of the transfer window and he could prove to be a superb addition to Steven Gerrard’s side this summer, should Ross Wilson be able to get him to Ibrox.

What’s the word?

According to ESPN, Rangers, Everton and Wolves are all keen on the young defender, whilst Tottenham Hotspur have also previously been said to be monitoring him, so it seems clear that his future likely lies away from the Riverside Stadium.

The report suggests that Middlesbrough will be willing to listen to offers in excess of £5m for the 20-year-old, who has two years left on his contract with the Teesside club.

Would he be a good signing?

Spence has been a regular at Middlesbrough for the past two seasons in the Championship, making 65 appearances in total, in which he has contributed two goals and no assists.

This season has seen the defender make 37 appearances in the English second tier, for which he has averaged a less than impressive 6.42 rating for his performances.

However, he is clearly highly rated and he wouldn’t be a first-team regular at that level at 20-years-old if he didn’t have a lot of talent, so he could prove to be a solid addition to Gerrard’s squad this summer.

Middlesbrough manager Neil Warnock, who will have seen it all during his long managerial career, was full of praise for Spence recently, saying:

“If you look at one or two of the full-backs that are around now – the lad at Liverpool, Trent Alexander-Arnold, and the lad at Manchester United from Palace (Aaron Wan-Bissaka) – they are all the same type as Djed.

“He does have enormous ability, and when you’ve got ability like that it’s criminal if you don’t get to the very top. But as I said to him in that first couple of weeks, he’ll only have himself to blame if he doesn’t get to the very top.”

If Spence can reach the heights of either Alexander-Arnold or Wan-Bissaka in the future then he would definitely prove to be a worthwhile signing by the Light Blues this summer.

Although Rangers have two quality players competing at right-back in James Tavernier and Nathan Patterson, the £1.8m-rated Spence could add some squad depth ahead of next season and could provide back-up should either get injured.

[freshpress-quiz id=“593776”]

We saw this season that, in the absence of Tavernier, Gerrard was forced to call upon the inexperienced Patterson, and while he has proved to be a huge success, that could have easily backfired, so adding another option at right-back ahead of next season would be a sensible move by Ross Wilson, especially if it was one as talented as Spence.

And, in other news… Bye-bye Kamara: Wilson should seal Rangers swoop for “very good” 22 y/o

Former West Ham striker Brian Deane has told Football FanCast in an exclusive interview that he can understand why David Moyes opted against signing a replacement for Sebastien Haller in January.

Haller departed West Ham for Ajax in the last transfer window, leaving the Hammers short upfront.

Despite that, no striker was brought in, meaning Michail Antonio has had to lead the line with no natural cover. However, prior to the 2-1 win against Burnley, the 31-year-old had missed the defeats to Chelsea and Newcastle United.

It has left some questioning the decision not to replace Haller as West Ham continue to compete against the likes of Chelsea and Liverpool for Champions League football, two teams who are stacked in attack, in contrast.

Deane, however, can see the sense behind Moyes, David Gold and David Sullivan’s thinking. Speaking exclusively to FFC on the subject, the ex-West Ham player said:

“It’s difficult because I think what people don’t realise a lot of the time is that you can turn round and say they should have brought a striker in, but the manager might not always be able to get what he wants.

“Bringing in somebody for the sake of it sometimes doesn’t work.”

The Hammers will now be expected to move for a new No.9 in the summer, though that is unlikely to be Chelsea’s Tammy Abraham after Moyes claimed that his alleged £40m price tag is too much for the club.