DEnglish national player Declan Rice, who is said to have been courted by Bayern Munich, will leave Premier League club West Ham United this summer. This was confirmed by West Ham chairman David Sullivan after the Hammers won the Conference League. “I think that should have been his last game,” Sullivan told talkSport on Thursday. West Ham beat Fiorentina 2-1 in the final in Prague on Wednesday night.
“We promised him that he could go. It pulls him away,” Sullivan said of Rice. “You can’t expect more from a man than he’s given this season. There comes a point when he has to move on and we have to get a replacement – or several replacements.”
Sullivan said the club offered their star a salary of £200,000 a week a year and a half ago. “He refused.” Rice’s contract runs until 2025. According to media reports, the transfer fee should be around 140 million euros.
West Ham’s captain Rice after winning the Conference League
Quelle: Getty Images/Richard Heathcote
The 24-year-old Rice, who is one of West Ham’s top performers and also wore the captain’s armband, has long been courted by international clubs. The midfielder went through the youth department of the east London club and made his professional debut in the 2016/17 season. He scored 15 goals in 245 games for the Hammers.
Der FC Bayern holt BVB-Star Warrior
FC Bayern has dealt a serious blow to competitor Borussia Dortmund. Munich will sign BVB star Raphael Guerreiro. According to information from BILD, there is a basic agreement between the 29-year-old defender and Bayern. Only small contractual details are missing for the final signature. The Portuguese comes on a free transfer, Dortmund would have liked to keep him. After the departure of Jude Bellingham to Real Madrid, it is the second top-class player that Borussia have to replace.
Raphael Guerreiro played 224 competitive games for Borussia Dortmund. He has 40 goals and 50 assists
Source: dpa/Christian Charisius
Guerreiro is intended as a luxury backup for many positions at Bayern. In coach Thomas Tuchel’s plans, the transfer through the departures of Joao Cancelo and Dany Blind – and possibly Benjamin Pavard and Lucas Hernandez – is extremely important for the outside. But Guerreiro is also a top alternative for midfield. The transfer probably also means the final end for a Cancelo obligation, which was previously only loaned out by Manchester City.
In all likelihood, Bayern will announce another signing on Friday. The Austrian Konrad Laimer will probably make his move from RB Leipzig to the record champions official. “I am ready for what is to come. I want to establish myself everywhere I go. If I get anywhere, I want to be successful,” Laimer said recently. He’s also free.
Real Sociedad want Leipzig striker
Cup winners RB Leipzig could get an expensive player off the payroll. The Spanish first division club Real Sociedad wants to sign Alexander Sörloth, who has only been on loan so far. “We love him, there’s little doubt about what we think of Alex,” sporting director Roberto Olabe said at a press conference on Thursday. The key is now whether Leipzig plans with Sörloth or wants to sell him. Since RB would have liked to have given up the Norwegian completely last summer, the latter should be the case.
By qualifying for the Champions League, the club from San Sebastian should be economically able to buy Sörloth. For the 27-year-old, a sum of a good ten million euros should be in the room. Sörloth came to Leipzig in 2020 as the successor to Timo Werner for twice the amount, but did not prevail there.
Hertha continues to rely on Dardai
Pal Dardai remains the head coach of Hertha BSC even after relegation to the second division. The Berlin club announced this on Thursday morning. “I feel that we all work, want to work and will work together for the benefit of Hertha BSC,” Dardai was quoted as saying in the statement. It initially only talks about the coming season.
“We are delighted that Pal will help shape the blue and white new start as head coach. He lives Hertha BSC and with his diligence, his dedication and his passion for our club he is the right man for the coming challenges that we will overcome together,” said sports director Benjamin Weber. The question of whether the Berliners will also get the license for the second division is still unresolved given the massive financial problems. Dardai returned to the coaching bench with the Berliners in mid-April as the successor to Sandro Schwarz. The 47-year-old could no longer prevent relegation to the second division in the remaining six games of the season.
Barcelona president on top after Messi transfer
FC Barcelona have wished Lionel Messi the best of luck on his move to the USA to Inter Miami. The Catalans had high hopes of bringing back the now 35-year-old world champion. At Monday’s meeting, Messi’s father Jorge and other representatives of the player communicated the pro-Miami decision to Barcelona’s President Joan Laporta, the Spanish champions wrote in a statement on their website. Messi left Barca in tears in the summer of 2021 because of the club’s difficult financial situation.
FC Barcelona also submitted a proposal for Messi’s return, the club wrote. “I heard that they had to sell players or lower salaries, and the truth is that I didn’t want that,” Messi said in an interview with the sports newspapers Mundo deportivo and Sport. He wanted to make his own decision. That is why his return to Barça did not materialize. “Even though I would have liked to do it, it wasn’t possible.”
It had previously been reported that the club could not provide Messi with any guarantees. Messi also rejected an offer with a total volume of almost one billion euros from Saudi Arabia. He also chose Miami, co-owner David Beckham’s club, with his family in mind. President Laporta understands and respects Messi’s decision to play in a less demanding league and be a little less in the limelight, the Barça statement said.
Bobic expects “wild hunt”
Because of the departure of Karim Benzema from Real Madrid and FC Bayern’s search for a striker, Fredi Bobic expects an intense transfer summer. “Now, with Real and Bayern Munich, two big clubs are already looking for a nine. A wild hunt will start, and then other effects will also be triggered,” wrote the former manager of Hertha BSC, Eintracht Frankfurt and VfB Stuttgart in a column for “Kicker”.
In his opinion, Bayern are facing a completely normal upheaval. The German record champions are not economically dependent on sales, but definitely want to do so, since coach Thomas Tuchel will express his ideas about the squad. “In addition, last season you had the impression that one or the other player seemed a bit saturated,” wrote Bobic.
Heidenheim goes into the Bundesliga adventure with Eicher
Bundesliga promoted 1. FC Heidenheim has extended the contract with goalkeeper Vitus Eicher, which is due to expire in a few weeks. The 32-year-old has now signed until June 30, 2025, the club announced. Eicher is number two in the Heidenheim goal behind regular keeper Kevin Müller.
“It’s difficult to sell,” says Stuttgart’s club boss
After staying up in the Bundesliga, VfB Stuttgart must pay attention to the budget when planning the squad for the coming season. “Of course we will have to generate transfer surpluses. Like almost every Bundesliga club,” said CEO Alexander Wehrle to TV broadcaster Sky. Since there are also compensation options, “now is not the one number that we absolutely have to achieve”.
Despite changes in the squad, players should not be sold at any price. “There are players we would be very reluctant to let go,” said the 48-year-old. The club had already shown that in January with offers with a total volume of over 40 million euros for the players Borna Sosa, Konstantinos Mavropanos and Hiroki Ito. But after the successful relegation, these players could also say goodbye. According to media reports, Sosa and Mavropanos are to leave the club. Goalkeeper Florian Müller is also about to move to Freiburg.
“Unsaleable is difficult because it would mean no matter what is offered, we say no. We certainly can’t say that in our situation,” said Wehrle about possible transfers. In addition to possible departures, the Swabians are also working on new signings. Only on Wednesday did the club confirm the commitment of full-back Maximilian Mittelstädt from relegated Hertha BSC.
