talkSPORT host blasts West Ham United as ‘Dr Frankenstein’ over Declan Rice deal live on air
talkSPORT host Rory Jennings blasted West Ham United as “Dr Frankenstein” and says the club have “created a monster” over the sale of Declan Rice.
Jennings was commenting on the £105million deal that took Rice to Arsenal live on air on Monday (July 17).
He believes West Ham have created a rod for their own backs in terms of incomings at the London Stadium this summer because selling clubs know they have a significant war chest to play with.
“West ham United are Dr Frankenstein, they created a monster and that monster is now consuming them,” Jennings said.
“They made it so that lavish, exorbitant sums were needed to get anywhere near a player. They made it so difficult for anybody because of the amount of money that they set.
“You’ve got to remember one day after winning that trophy, the first time West Ham United won a trophy since 1980, one day later their chairman was on talkSPORT acknowledging that he was for sale, acknowledging that he was for sale for the right price.
“So they created a world where it was all about the seller. What they did was, they made sure that everybody knew firstly that West Ham are now caked, they’re caked, they’ve got loads of money at their disposal.
“So there are two problems here; West Ham are caked and they have a Declan Rice-shaped hole in their midfield, so two and two makes a Christmas cake.”
It’s a fair point but…
Rory Jennings does not always necessarily hit the mark, no one will ever forget his wild prediction about Manchester City star Erling Haaland before the start of last season.
That said, it is hard to disagree with what he is saying on this occasion – even if there is perhaps a little more nuance to it than he is suggesting.
Put it this way, is £105million a lot for Declan Rice? Yes, of course it is. But even before Paris Saint-Germain changed the landscape of football transfers forever when they signed Neymar in 2017, there was a premium on England internationals – especially involving domestic transfers.
So, the Hammers were well within their rights to bargain for a high price for Rice, moreover, they had a team willing to pay and others who were interested in his signature too.
Of course, that has alerted other clubs to the fact West Ham have some cash to spend and the knock-on effect is that their targets are now probably pricier than they would have been.
In some ways, it’s kind of you’re damned if you do, you’re damned if you don’t.
In other West Ham United news, the Hammers have learnt Leon Goretzka’s stance over a move to the London Stadium amid a £34.4million update.