West Ham handed huge Declan Rice boost ahead of Brighton clash | OneFootball

West Ham United are in line to receive a huge boost ahead of Saturday’s match against Brighton and Hove Albion…

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According to the ever-reliable ExWHUemployee, Irons midfielder Declan Rice is set to finally return from injury after missing their last six Premier League games, which included disappointing defeats to Chelsea, Newcastle and, most recently, Everton on Sunday afternoon.

Speaking on ‘The West Ham Way’ podcast, he revealed: “I can tell you that Rice will be back for the Brighton game. I think he’ll come straight into the starting XI. He should be back for the Brighton game. Noble will be available for the Brighton game as well, so that gives us a bit more options there.”

Big boost

This will come as massive encouragement to David Moyes and the rest of the Hammers squad, as the England international has been an integral part of their success this season. There has been a huge void to fill in the heart of midfield and the 22-year-old watched on yet again as the Toffees carved open West Ham’s engine room on their way to a narrow 1-0 victory on Sunday.

The east London outfit are still firmly in the race for a spot in Europe next season but their chances of making the Champions League have been severely hampered following three defeats in their last four games, with Rice being sorely missed.

They now need Manchester United to do them a favour and win against both Leicester City and Liverpool this week, as a win over the Seagulls would see them sit two points behind fourth with only two games left to play.

The Irons are currently in fifth place but could be leapfrogged by the 2019/20 champions if they win at Old Trafford on Thursday, whilst Everton in eighth are now only three points behind, so it’s certainly getting very tight now.

Having Rice back will give the side a massive boost, for both morale and performances on the pitch.

He is among their top five performers on the season with an average WhoScored rating of 7.02, whilst he leads the way for average passes (47.4) and interceptions (two) per game and isn’t too far behind the top spot for tackles (1.9) either.

As explained by Kevin Campbell to Football Insider, Rice is “a phenomenal holding midfielder” and has been a “revelation in midfield” this season.

Moyes and everyone at the London Stadium will be buzzing to have him available on Saturday night in what is a must-win clash for the Hammers.

AND in other news, Get it done: Moyes could seal huge West Ham upgrade by signing “fearless” £26m “beast”…