Former Arsenal star turned pundit Paul Merson has tipped West Ham United Declan Rice to leave the club.
Rice has been making the headlines this week after pledging his international allegiance to England.
He opened a can of worms when he chose England over the Republic of Ireland on Wednesday.
Mixed response to Rice switch
The 20-year-old midfielder had won three senior Republic of Ireland caps in friendlies having played for his grandparents’ country since under-16 level.
And his decision has received a mixed response from pundits and fans alike.
Rice has had to submit a formal request to FIFA to officially switch across.
While the decision did not sit well with Merson, he insisted in his Daily Star column that people should not be too hard on the youngster.
Merson fires warning to West Ham
He was hard on West Ham fans, though, warning them Rice won’t be around much longer after his England decision.
“I just think this could be a problem for West Ham,” Merson told the Daily Star.
“Bigger clubs will be looking at him come the end of the season and probably are now.
“He signed a new contract but it’s not worth a whole lot of money and he could certainly earn a lot more elsewhere.
‘Any of the top teams would take him’
“Any of the top teams would take him. Manchester United and Arsenal both need a midfielder.
“Even Manchester City need someone to come in for Fernandinho now and then.
“Now he’s chosen England, he’s just added to his value. Everyone is looking for young English talent. He ticks all the boxes. West Ham will hope they can hang on to him for as long as possible, because he has become one of their most important players. I suspect that he will just keep on getting better and better.”
Merson’s comments will worry West Ham. Particularly as Rice is widely reported to be one of four midfielders being regularly scouted by Pep Guardiola as a replacement for Fernandinho, read full story here.
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