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Arsenal ‘very serious’ about signing Declan Rice next summer

By on February 1, 2023

Declan-Rice

Arsenal are reportedly ‘very serious’ about signing West Ham United midfielder Declan Rice in the summer, as per the transfer insider Dean Jones.

The Gunners have been exploring the possibility of strengthening their engine room since the start of this season. They tried to broker a deal for Douglas Luiz on deadline day last summer but could not manage to get the deal done. So, they ended up commencing the campaign with a thin midfield department.

Arsenal left it late once again this winter to reinforce in the middle of the park. The Emirates outfit made a concrete approach to sign Brighton and Hove Albion midfielder Moises Caicedo during the dying embers of the January window, however, they failed to persuade the Seagulls to cash-in.

Mikel Arteta then made a surprise deadline-day deal and signed Jorginho from Chelsea for a fee of around £12m, including bonuses.

However, the 31-year-old has only signed an 18-month contract with an option to extend the deal for one more year. So, he is a short-term addition and it has been touted that the Gunners will look to make a move for a new younger midfielder next summer, with Rice being suggested as a serious target.

Summer deal

Speaking to GiveMeSport, Jones has stated that Arsenal are very keen on signing Rice and they will ‘definitely’ try to broker a deal for the England international next summer.

Jones said:

“The Declan Rice interest is very serious, I’m told. I was very doubtful about the authenticity of that rumour at first but I’ve checked it out several times with different sources and they are definitely going to have a crack at signing him.”

It has been reported that Chelsea are also eyeing a move for Rice. So, the north London club will have to overcome the Blues’ challenge in getting this deal done. Having lost out in the battle to sign Mykhaylo Mudryk last month, the Premier League leaders will be desperate to beat their city rivals in the race to land Rice.

The West Ham man has previously expressed his desire to leave the club at the end of this season in order to take the next step in his career and it was reported that he could be available for a fee of around £70m.

It will be interesting to see whether Arsenal will be able to win the race for Rice, it has been reported that the 24-year-old favours a move to the north London club over Graham Potter’s side. So, that will give the Gunners an advantage in getting this done.