Arsenal are the current favourites for the transfer of West Ham United midfielder Declan Rice, who is their priority target for the summer.
However, according to Ben Jacobs in his exclusive weekly CaughtOffside column, that doesn’t mean Chelsea or others can be ruled out just yet, as we saw with the Mykhaylo Mudryk saga this January.
Rice is expected to leave West Ham, with the club resigned to their best player moving on at the end of this season, when he’ll be just a year away from the end of his contract at the London Stadium.
According to Jacobs, Rice would ideally like to stay in London and to play in the Champions League, so it’s easy to see why Arsenal are in a strong position.
Jacobs also notes that Mikel Arteta is admired by the England international, so that could also be a factor in the Gunners’ favour as they are also linked with a number of other targets such as Moises Caicedo and Youri Tielemans.
“Arsenal’s midfield priority will be Declan Rice and West Ham are resigned to losing him. David Moyes, as you’d expect, has been quick to argue if Rice leaves it should be for a British-record transfer fee. But suitors are hoping for a fee of £70-80m. This is ultimately because Rice’s contract expires in summer 2024,” Jacobs wrote.
He added: “Chelsea also really want Rice. Manchester United and Newcastle United can’t be ruled out either, although I understand Rice’s preference is to stay in London. That won’t be a deal-breaker, but Arsenal and Chelsea can certainly use it to their advantage.
“Rice also wants Champions League football. Whether or not that means instantly remains to be seen, but Arsenal can clearly use this to their advantage given where they are heading. Rice has also spoken glowingly about Arteta.
“So it’s probably fair to term Arsenal the favourites right now, but as we saw with their pursuit of Mykhaylo Mudryk that doesn’t always mean a huge deal this far out. If Chelsea offer big or above market value money, Arsenal would have to go against their transfer-market principles.”