Declan Rice reacts to stunning West Ham win over Sevilla
By Anubhav Sarker
West Ham midfielder Declan Rice sent out warning shots after their win over Sevilla in the Europa League and said that the East London outfit feared no one and would even welcome Barcelona.
Rice, reportedly sought-after by England’s best teams, put on a marvellous display over 120 minutes and thoroughly deserves all the praise coming his way post-match.
It came as little surprise that the captain fronted up to the media and gave a post-match interview that West Ham fans, we’re sure, will rewatch again and again.
When asked about who he’d rather face in the quarter-finals, Rice offered a confident response. He said, as quoted by The Metro: “There’s no-one to fear. Sevilla were probably the favourites. When the draw came out, people thought we had the hardest draw and we were going to get knocked out… and we’ve knocked them out!
“So, look, we can go away anywhere and get a result, and teams coming here know they’re in for a game when they step into this stadium with our fans, so I’m ready to take anyone.”
Joe Cole was quick to offer Barcelona as a potential fixture, to which Rice laughed and replied: “You’ve had some big nights there as well geez! Yeah, it would be special to go there and face Barcelona.”
He then went on to acknowledge all the hard work done by the team since Moyes arrived in the middle of a relegation battle: “Like I said, this is what this club deserves. We’ve worked hard for this, from a relegation battle when Moyes first came in to getting in Europe last year.
“Not having the biggest of squads this season, a lot of question marks over how far we’re going to go and what we’re going to do, yet we’re still up there in the Premier League and into the quarter-finals. So there’s a big buzz around the place.”
Historic Night
A might that will be etched in the memories of hammers fans for years to come. Since David Moyes re-joined in 2019, West Ham have consistently grown in stature and last night was the cherry on the topping.
Never mind beating Sevilla, a team drenched in Europa League glory, but coming back from behind to knock them off in the round of 16, was truly the stuff of dreams for the West Ham faithful.
Right from the backroom staff, the substitutes, the players who featured, the fans, and the manager present in the stadium all deserve credit for ensuring West Ham witnessed one of the most memorable nights in the club’s history.
In other West Ham news, one of BT Sport’s pundits could not believe what he saw from one Irons ace last night.
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