Declan Rice will angle for Chelsea transfer if he leaves West Ham, but Tony Cottee thinks he ‘is better’ than Manchester United duo Fred and Nemanja Matic and could even replace Fernandinho at Man City

Declan Rice's outstanding season has seen him rise to one of West Ham United's best players which in turn has seen him linked with a transfer to some of the biggest clubs in the Premier League.

Chelsea and Manchester United are both reportedly keen on the midfielder and the Hammers' former striker, Tony Cottee, thinks there is only one place he will go if he decides to leave east London.

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"If Declan was to decide to leave, I think he’ll go to Chelsea," Cottee told .

"The reason for that is he was at Chelsea as a kid. He is best friends with Mason Mount, and he’s grew up with all the young kids at the club.

"You know, Tammy Abraham, he’s in Italy now, but he grew up with him and Callum Hudson-Odoi, and Reece James.

"All those young boys that are playing so well for Chelsea, Declan is friends with them.

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"I don’t want him to leave, but if he was leaving, I think most of the West Ham fans wouldn’t be grudging towards the guy going to Chelsea. Because we all know that he was there as a kid."

In the absence of regular captain Mark Noble, Rice has been given the armband by David Moyes and has flourished with the extra responsibility.

Whilst his Chelsea connections make the Blues favourite to sign him, Man United could still be in the hunt for the 22-year-old and their fierce rivals City could see Rice as a replacement for the ageing Fernandinho, who will be 37 at the end of the season.

"If I look at Manchester United, they’ve got Fred and Matic and Declan is definitely a better player than those two," Cottee added.

"I think he’s that good of a player. I think if you look at Manchester City, where you’ve got Fernandinho, who’s coming to the end of his career, he needs to be replaced."

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