Both Arsenal and Manchester City are set to make offers for West Ham United captain ‘this week’ as the battle for his signature heats up.
The England international is one of the most sought-after players in Europe and is destined to command a huge transfer fee this summer.
So, Rice’s next destination will ultimately be decided by whoever offers the most for him. Therefore, it’s going to be a very interesting week for Arsenal, Man City and West Ham fans.
Arsenal have long been considered to be the favourites to sign the 24-year-old. However, Man City’s interest has never gone away and now they are planning to make a sizeable offer.
This comes after the Cityzens saw midfielder Ilkay Gundogan leave the club on Monday to join Barcelona.
As a result, Pep Guardiola will have to bring in a replacement, and arguably, there is no better candidate than Rice.
So, Arsenal fans will be increasingly nervous, especially considering Man City’s treble-winning success last term.
Arsenal, Man City bids imminent
Now, according to Fabrizio Romano, both Arsenal and Man City are set to make bids for Rice imminently.
On Twitter, he wrote: “Manchester City and Arsenal both want to bid for Declan Rice this week. More to follow.”
As it stands, Arsenal have already seen two bids rejected for Rice. The first was a fee of around £80m.
They quickly made an improved offer – a down payment of around £75m, paid in four instalments. Bonuses and add-ons would have taken the deal through the £90m mark.
But, West Ham have stood firm and instantly knocked back both approaches. Now, Man City are poised to make their move.
It was reported last week that the Cityzens were preparing an offer of £90m for Rice. But, they would pay this fee in two years, rather than the four year timescale proposed by the Gunners.
Despite the widespread reports, the offer never materialised. But, it now seems that Guardiola and co could make their move in the very near future.
West Ham have previously put a £120m price tag on Rice. So, it will be interesting to see if Arsenal or Man City will be able to convince them to sell for less.
