West Ham’s Mark Noble signs contract to tie him to club until 2020

English midfielder has been linked to a possible declaration for Ireland

Mark Noble of West Ham has signed a new long-term contract with the club. Photograph: Julian Finney/Getty Images
Mark Noble of West Ham has signed a new long-term contract with the club. Photograph: Julian Finney/Getty Images

West Ham midfielder Mark Noble has signed a new long-term contract, the Barclays Premier League side have announced.

The 27-year-old vice-captain has put pen to paper on a deal which will tie him to the club until the summer of 2020.

Noble, who joined West Ham as a 13-year-old in 2000, made his first-team debut four years later and has chalked up 310 appearances for the club.

“I’m obviously over the moon because it takes me until I’m 33!” Noble said on the club’s official website.

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“I’m very happy with the contract and very grateful to the chairmen for giving me it and I’m looking forward to the next five years.

“I love playing football and I love playing for the Club so to be rewarded with a new five-and-a-half-year contract is fantastic.

“In football you don’t get any younger, but I keep myself fit and this is great for me and my family, because it gives us security for the rest of our lives.

“It’s not about the money, though. I always give 100 per cent in every game I play, even if it’s not enough. As a West Ham fan, I know we’ll lose games like everyone does, but I’m settled, I’m happy and that’s when I play my best football.”

Meanwhile Nani has opened the door to a possible return to Manchester United after admitting he still "loves" the club and is in regular contact with executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward.

United sent Nani on a season-long loan to Sporting Lisbon as part of the deal that brought Marcos Rojo to Old Trafford last summer. The winger revealed Woodward has been in touch to congratulate him on his good form.