Former England international Danny Mills has claimed that West Ham United midfielder Declan Rice would rather join Tottenham Hotspur than Manchester United.
The 20-year-old has emerged as one of the nation’s finest young talents after a phenomenal season with the Hammers, and Mills feels that a big move is likely in his future.
“If you’ve got the choice between Man United and two clubs in the Champions League next season, where are you going to go? Not Old Trafford,” he told Football Insider. “Are you going to improve and develop as a player under Ole-Gunnar Solskjaer? Nobody knows. Are you going to improve under Mauricio Pochettino? Yes.
“Man United is not as big a pull as it used to be. There are other teams players would rather play for. Once upon a time, Man United came knocking and off you went. A player like Rice, I’m sure he would rather join Spurs than Man United.”
OPINION
Mills makes some interesting points, here. He’s right that United are probably not as big of a draw for players as they used to be during Sir Alex Ferguson’s heyday. He’s correct, also, that you’re almost guaranteed to improved as a player under Pochettino, whereas we don’t know whether that’s the case with Solskjaer at United. As for Rice rather joining Tottenham than United, that may be slightly wide of the mark. Rice is a former Chelsea academy player, converted to a West Ham product and loyal Hammers first team star, so would he really like to sign up with their London rivals Spurs? That’s highly unlikely, surely. Yes, from a player development point of view he would probably love to play under someone like Pochettino. But as for Tottenham as a club, it’s extremely difficult to picture the England international wearing their shirt. Still, you never know what’s going to happen in football.
