DECLAN RICE is on a mission to follow in the footsteps of Frenkie de Jong by joining a European giant.
But for now, one of the rising stars of English football insists he is happy at West Ham.
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The two young midfielders come face-to-face in the Nations League semi-finals in eight days when England take on Holland in Portugal.
Ajax star De Jong, 22, is joining Barcelona for £65million while Rice, 20, is a £50m target for Manchester United.
Asked about his desire to follow De Jong, Rice said: “Yes, definitely. I want that.
“You always want to play at the top. You want to play in the Champions League.
“De Jong got his move to Barcelona and it’s fully deserved.
‘FULLY FOCUSED’
“He’s a top, top player. It would be great to come up against him in the Nations League.”
Rice, 20, is aware of the transfer talk about his future but said: “During last season I just signed a new five-year contract with West Ham so my focus is fully on playing for them.
“The fans love me and I love them. I’m not thinking about anything else, for sure.”
After switching nations from Ireland, Rice won his first senior cap in a 5-0 win over the Czech Republic at Wembley and made his full debut in the 5-1 thrashing of Montenegro in March.
Now he wants to end the season with Nations League silverware and said: “It would be massive.
“We’ve a massive chance now to create history.
“It would stand us in good stead for the Euros next year and the World Cup after that.”
