Manchester United have accepted that they won’t be able to sign West Ham midfielder Declan Rice this summer, according to reports in England.
The Red Devils’ failure to qualify for the Champions League means that the England international is unlikely to be tempted by a move away from London.
Considering Rice’s exorbitant asking price, the vast majority of fans on Twitter are happy that United have decided against signing the 23-year-old:
Over rated. Don’t want him.
— £vergreen (@EverG_22) May 27, 2022
Thank god. Great player but wouldn’t be a good signing for us in our current situation
— リラックス (@ShadedTree_) May 27, 2022
We don’t need him either..
— Tao_fhik™️ (@horlacares01) May 27, 2022
Declan Rice is way overpriced, he is a good player but nobody will pay that money unless it’s a club owned by oil sheiks. We can get a player nearly as good for £50 million from overseas. I hope Man Utd learned from the MaGuire transfer. He is not being seriously considered.
— Bob 🏴🇪🇺 (@asimov200) May 27, 2022
No more overpaying for overpriced average players
— INCA®🇧🇼 (@incapage5star) May 27, 2022
His price tag is ludicrous
— 🔴 Matei Colea 🔴 (@ColeaMatei) May 27, 2022
Thank goodness, he’s nowhere near a 100 million player, nowhere near!
— d-13 (@officially_d13) May 27, 2022
We dodging it pic.twitter.com/BfYNBkDSdK
— Kã-Wånjå (@WanjaUtd) May 27, 2022
Thank God
— ɓɑɓy Բɑcɛ✨ (@callmekay_____) May 27, 2022
It should be pointed out that Rice will be playing in the UEFA Conference League next season, so United would still be playing in a superior continental competition, but there are other teams (such as Chelsea and Manchester City) who can offer the midfielder what he wants.
Many will feel that United could sign a player (such as Konrad Laimer or Yves Bissouma) for a fraction of the price and still get a very capable holding midfielder. We shall see who manager Erik Ten Hag ends up pursuing instead of Rice.