Declan Rice declared his love for West Ham following their Europa Conference League victory, while David Moyes hailed his first major trophy win as the best night of his career.
Jarrod Bowen’s last-minute winner saw West Ham to a dramatic 2-1 victory over Fiorentina in the final in Prague.
Lifting the trophy could be Rice’s last act as a West Ham player, with speculation rife that a summer move away is on the cards.
Moyes said last month there is a chance Rice could leave – provided the price is right as it is believed the midfielder has a “gentleman’s agreement” that he can move in the summer – provided West Ham receive an offer worth £120m, be that in a transfer fee or a transfer fee plus players. Arsenal are interested, as are Bayern Munich.
Rice said: “At the moment, there’s a lot of speculation going on about my future. There is interest from other clubs, that’s out there, but I’ve got two years left at West Ham ultimately.
“I love this club, I love playing for this club. There’s not been anything yet, so my focus is on playing for West Ham, enjoying tonight and then seeing what happens. I’m captain of this club, I love it to pieces and I cannot speak highly enough of this place. Let’s see what happens.”
On becoming the first West Ham player to lift a major trophy for 43 years, Rice added: “Honestly, it means absolutely everything. Tonight, the lads have been so on it. We had a real belief, I’m not just happy for us, the manager, but these fans, the staff – no one knows the work they put in. The chefs, player liaisons, I’m just as happy for myself as I am for them. I’m so, so happy.”
Moyes said: “He’s still going strong, still wants to come to the game. It’s great, it was a great moment to have your family at the game.
Now the manager has written his name in West Ham folklore, joining Ron Greenwood and John Lyall as trophy-winning Hammers managers. A place in next season’s Europa League means the club has qualified for Europe three seasons in a row, for the first time. – Sky Sports
