There is a "bit of tension" behind-the-scenes at West Ham over Declan Rice's future at the club, according to Daily Star journalist Paul Brown.

Rice has developed into a crucial player at the London Stadium in recent seasons, but is attracting interest from elsewhere, and Brown has suggested the Irons may be getting nervous about the prospect of losing him this summer.

What's the latest news involving Rice?

The 23-year-old has had another standout campaign in east London, and recently finished third in the race for the Football Writers' Association (FWA) award, behind Mohamed Salah and Kevin De Bruyne.

With this in mind, it is no surprise that West Ham are desperate to keep him. David Moyes has stated that the midfield is worth at least £150m, and is not for sale, and the Premier League outfit are trying to tie him down to a new contract.

However, it was recently reported that Rice had turned down their latest contract offer, putting his future at the club in doubt.

This may have put some of the top clubs in the league on alert, with Chelsea and both Manchester clubs believed to be monitoring him heading into the upcoming transfer window.

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What has Brown said about West Ham and Rice?

Brown has revealed that Moyes appears to be getting frustrated about having to answer questions about Rice, and has hinted that the club may be feeling uneasy about the current situation, despite the 29-cap international having two years left on his current deal.

When asked whether he thought West Ham could convince Rice to stay for another year, Brown told GIVEMESPORT: “We asked Moyes this at Chelsea, and he bristled a bit. He didn’t like the repeated questioning. He seems to not really want to talk about it at all.

“So, there is obviously a bit of tension there, I think. But, as he said, Rice is still on quite a long contract.”

Are West Ham's hopes of keeping Rice fading away?

Potentially.

After losing against Arsenal on Sunday, West Ham can no longer qualify for the Champions League through their league position.

The only way they can now make Europe's elite club competition is to win the Europa League, and their chances in that have been hit after they lost the first leg of their semi-final clash against Eintracht Frankfurt 2-1 last week.

As things stand, it looks like West Ham will probably be playing in the Europa Conference League next season, which will be a step down for Rice.

Is he going to be excited about playing in that competition? It seems unlikely, even if he could be offered the captain's armband on a full-time basis when Mark Noble retires later this month.

Rice is getting better and better, and will want to test himself in the biggest matches against the best players in the world.

Unless West Ham turn their tie around against Frankfurt and go on to win the tournament, they won't be playing in the Champions League next year, and this could be the final nail in the coffin for them in terms of holding on to Rice.