Ian Abrahams has admitted he’s confident that Arsenal will be able to sign £100 million midfielder Declan Rice.
The Lowdown: Arsenal will look to improve
Considering Arsenal were indeed willing to spend big on Mykhailo Mudryk in January but instead only spent a fraction of that on Leandro Trossard, would suggest that there will be money available in the summer.
Even if Arsenal don’t end up winning the Premier League – which looks rather unlikely now given their lead at the top – they will have Champions League football for the first time since the 2016/17 season, so should be able to attract a higher calibre of player.
Arsenal will know that if they wish to be challenging for the Premier League each and every season then money must be invested this summer and in windows going forward and one area they could look to bolster is midfield given Thomas Partey’s injury woes this season.
The Latest: Rice would cost Arsenal £100 million
While speaking on TalkSPORT, Abrahams admitted he was fairly certain Rice would move to The Emirates this summer, although it will force them to pay a club-record fee for the midfielder.
He said: (0:15) “This is an outstanding player, this is a £100 million footballer who -regardless of what Roy Keane says – his old club would love to sign if Liverpool don’t get Jude Bellingham they’d like to sign.
“I’m pretty certain that clubs like Chelsea and Arsenal, who I think he’ll end up going to, they want to sign as well.”
The Verdict: Huge battle for his signature
It’s no surprise so many clubs are indeed interested in Rice as he is one of the top midfielders in the Premier League and even this term when the Hammers have been poor he ranks inside the top 20 for players tackled across the division, and is also yet to make an error in the league this season which shows how reliable he is (FBRef).
Reports have been swirling around his year about how Rice may well prefer a move to Arsenal, and it’s no surprise given the trajectory they are on under Mikel Arteta, but also because they boast such a young squad, the youngest in the league.
Therefore, Rice would fit in very nicely with what Arenal need for the here and now, but also be able to build around the likes of him and Martin Odegaard in midfield for the future, but his eye-watering price tag is sure to test Arteta and Edu’s resolve when it comes to spending huge as their last big-money signing – Nicolas Pepe – certainly didn’t work out.