Declan Rice celebrated lifting the Premier League trophy with Arsenal on Sunday, but there was one moment of disappointment for the midfielder on that sweltering Sunday afternoon.

With Arsenal completing a 2-1 win over Crystal Palace, Rice left the field before turning back to listen to the final scores from around the league. When he saw that West Ham had won, but Spurs had too, his disappointment was evident.

Those two results confirmed West Ham’s relegation, and despite Rice no longer having any contractual stake in the club, he clearly still has an emotional connection with his old side.

“I’m absolutely gutted to see West Ham relegated,” Rice wrote on Instagram on Tuesday. “A club that really does mean so much to me.

“As I said before, I wouldn’t be where I am today without everything the club has done for me. With that being said, I have no doubt they’ll be back where they belong in the Premier League in no time. I will be supporting always.”

West Ham will surely be one of the favourites to come back up next season, but you can never take anything for granted.

Leicester City seemed too big to stay down after their relegation to the Championship in 2024/25, but a disastrous 2025/26 campaign actually saw them suffer another relegation to League One.

The Championship is full of clubs that probably expected to come straight back up, and it doesn’t always work that way. There will probably be more than a few players pushing for a summer departure, and West Ham will have to ensure they still have a competitive team when their stars disappear.

Rice will be watching on and supporting his old team from afar, but the situation is ultimately out of his control now.