David Moyes has said that West Ham have had no bids or enquiries from Chelsea for Declan Rice.
The Blues are being linked with a move for their former academy player after his stunning rise through the ranks at the Hammers.
Frank Lampard sees the 21-year-old's ability to play at either centre-back or defensive midfield as a major asset and would be keen for Chelsea to pursue the England international.
However, the Hammers are not going to let one of their star men go cheaply, if they release him at all.
West Ham are likely to slap a £80million price tag on his head, something which would likely deter Chelsea from paying this summer.
But Moyes insists that there hasn't been discussions of his 'future captain' leaving east London just yet.
"It was always the plan, there was no intention to lose Declan Rice," Moyes said. "We have had no bids and no enquiries. There is a lot of speculation but I can only tell you what I know.
"I wouldn’t want to lose him anyway because he is too big a player for us, he is too important and a big part of the squad.
"He’s been captain already, I think he is learning a lot of leadership from Mark Noble, so I hope in the future we will have an incredibly talented footballer with great leadership skills and will be the captain of West Ham.
Asked if it would take 'Bank of England' money to prise him away, Moyes added: "Well I hope that is the case. We have still got a long way to go in the window, maybe somebody has the Bank of England but nobody has shown that."
