Moyes says Declan Rice should be ‘welcomed back’ by fans when West Ham face Arsenal
Declan Rice and David Moyes celebrate West Ham winning the Europa Conference League
David Moyes has said that he hopes West Ham’s fans will welcome Declan Rice back to the London Stadium when they face Arsenal on Wednesday.
The Hammers will be hoping to bounce back from a 1-0 defeat to Everton by beating the Gunners in the Carabao Cup fixture, which would book them a spot in the quarter-finals.
Moyes has faced Arsenal four times in the Carabao Cup throughout his career and has lost every time, so will be determined to turn that around.
The big story of the night will inevitably be Rice’s return to West Ham, almost four months on from his £105m move to Arsenal.
Moyes says that he hopes that the Hammers supporters will give him a warm reception when he returns to the London Stadium for the first time since his big-money transfer.
“Well I hope he will be back because you’ve got to remember this is the man who lifted the first European trophy in 50 years. He should be welcomed back with open arms,” Moyes said in his pre-Arsenal presser, as broadcast on Sky Sports News.
“We’re all looking forward to seeing him again. He was a brilliant member of the team, led the team brilliantly well, conducted himself impeccably as a West Ham captain and player in his time here.
“I’m really looking forward to seeing Dec, I’ve not seen him since he left. I don’t know if I want him to play but I hope he’s there.
“I think if you see the way Dec conducted himself throughout (his time at West Ham, he shouldn’t get anything other than a good reception). He was involved with the supporters, he was always seen helping the club out when needed.
“And the most important thing was that he gave 100 per cent in every game even though we all sort of knew that he’d probably not be staying at West Ham.
“All credit to him, he conducted himself brilliantly well and for that alone he deserves to be cheered.”
Rice has made 14 appearances for Arsenal so far, scoring two goals in the process. He has played a key role in the Gunner’s early success this season, who currently sit in second place in the Premier League table.
If he does feature against West Ham on Wednesday, it will be interesting to see how he plays and how the crowd react.
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