West Ham valuation of 28-cap international 'a bit excessive'

West Ham‘s £150m valuation of midfielder Declan Rice is “excessive”, according to transfer insider Pete O’Rourke.

The east London club have reportedly slapped that huge price tag on their star man’s head as they look to fend off interest from their Premier League rivals this summer.

The Daily Mail recently reported that West Ham will demand £150m from any outfit who enquires about signing Rice when the transfer window opens.

It comes after manager David Moyes had previously claimed that £100m for his vice-captain would be “cheap”.

“I said in the summer that I thought Declan Rice was £100 million. That was the sales, that was cheap, that was your chance to get Declan Rice cheap,” the Scotsman was quoted as saying by Eurosport.

The 23-year-old continues to impress for the Hammers, second behind only Jarrod Bowen when it comes to average match rating on WhoScored, making it no surprise his club value him so highly.

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For O’Rourke, though, West Ham’s valuation of their midfield star is a little too high to say the least.

Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, the football journalist said: “David Moyes previously spoke about him being £100m and that being cheap. Going up to 150 seems a bit excessive to me right now.”

No. It is hard to justify spending that sort of money on a midfielder who is not going to win you games week in, week out. Elite forwards, the Kylian Mbappes and Erling Haalands of this world, are probably the only players in world football who warrant a fee like the above.

That being said, it is easy to see why Rice is worth £150m to his employers. West Ham would find it virtually impossible to replace him.

The 28-cap England