West Ham midfielder Declan Rice has confirmed he does harbour ambitions of playing in the Champions League in the future.

The England international, who is reportedly being targeted by Manchester United, Manchester City and Chelsea, was speaking about his potential hopes of finishing in the top four with the Hammers when he said:

“To have that Champions League music playing, that’s where I want to be. It’s special, I can’t really describe it, to be honest. As a kid it’s your dream, first of all to play in the Premier League, but to be competing for the Champions League [as well]. You know West Ham, people say (we’re) a mid-table club and last three seasons we’ve been battling relegation. But this, what we’re doing now, has always been there. It was just about when. We’re on fire.”

West Ham do still have a chance of finishing in the Champions League places this season, but they are not favourites, and were the Irons to miss out, there could well be question marks over Rice’s future.

Even if the 22-year-old is open to a move, though, United would still have a large obstacle to overcome in the midfielder’s asking price.

It is believed Rice’s valuation could be as high as £100m, which would reportedly put off the Red Devils from making an offer, especially if the Hammers are unwilling to accept a part-exchange deal including Jesse Lingard.