A fan catches the exact moment Declan Rice learns West Ham has been relegated.
A fan at Selhurst Park caught the moment Declan Rice learned that West Ham had been relegated to the Championship, just before Arsenal lifted the Premier League trophy. It was a mix of emotions for Rice, who spent eight years at West Ham before moving to Arsenal.
After playing in Arsenal’s 2-1 win over Crystal Palace, Rice celebrated their first Premier League title in 22 years by lifting the trophy in front of thousands of fans who had traveled south. It was an amazing moment for the England midfielder, but it also came with some sadness.
Even though West Ham won against Leeds, they were relegated for the first time in 15 years because Tottenham’s 1-0 win over Everton kept them just above West Ham by two points. The news was announced over the stadium speakers at Selhurst Park, and Rice was clearly upset, shown in a video where he hits his hands together in frustration.
One fan commented on the clip, saying, “This really hurts to see. Declan Rice finding out West Ham are relegated. He still loves us,” while another added, “He’s proper West Ham, will always love the bloke.”
Earlier this month, before West Ham and Arsenal played on May 10, Rice spoke highly of his old club. In an interview with Amazon Prime Sport, he said, “West Ham gave me everything. Without them, I wouldn’t be here. They gave me a chance when Chelsea didn’t, and a lot of people there really helped me.” He also admitted it was “not nice” to see the club struggling.
In other news, The Athletic reported that defender Jean-Clair Todibo had an argument with West Ham’s manager, Nuno Espírito Santo, after the team lost 3-1 to Newcastle United last weekend. Nuno took Todibo off the field 25 minutes into the game, replacing him with Taty Castellanos, which made Todibo very angry.
Todibo complained to the goalkeeper coach, Rui Barbosa, and then confronted Nuno. During their argument, Todibo said he wouldn’t play for West Ham again as long as Nuno was the manager. Because of this, Todibo was left out of the squad for their game against Leeds.