Arsenal expect to finalise a deal with West Ham for the £105m transfer of England midfielder Declan Rice on Monday as Mikel Arteta looks to strengthen his midfield, according to the Sun.
The Gunners have been chasing Rice for months and had two offers turned down by the Hammers, which opened the door for Manchester City to submit their offer, however, it was also rejected.
Arsenal tabled a third bid worth £105m last week, which was acceptable to West Ham, but talks have been on-going over the structure of the deal and the payment terms. The Hammers want the £100m up front payment paid by the start of 2025, but Arsenal have been pushing to pay over a longer period.
However, talks have been progressing well in recent days and The Sun says a deal is expected to be finalised on Monday which will allow Rice to complete his proposed switch to the Emirates Stadium.
Personal terms between Rice and Arsenal are said to be in place with Football London claiming that the Englishman will put pen to paper on a long-term deal worth around £250,000 a week, becoming one of the club’s top earners.
If everything goes as planned, the 24-year-old’s deal would eclipse the £100m Man City paid Aston Villa for Jack Grealish in 2021 and it will become a new British record. The all-round midfielder has set his heart on Arsenal and wants to play under Arteta.
Deal close
Arsenal are expected to return to pre-season training over the coming days and Arteta would love to have the majority of his transfer business done as soon as possible as he prepares to fine tune his squad for the new season.
Kai Havertz has already moved to the Emirates Stadium from Chelsea and Rice has been tipped to be the second summer signing for the club. The Gunners are also working on a deal to sign Ajax defender Jurrien Timber this summer with negotiations at an advanced stage.
Rice made 50 appearances for West Ham last term and made nine goal contributions in all competitions as David Moyes won his first trophy as a West Ham manager by beating Fiorentina 2-1 to claim the UEFA Europa Conference League title last month.
Rice, who is still on holiday after featuring for England in the 2024 UEFA Euro qualifiers against Malta and North Macedonia, will be an excellent addition to Arsenal – who could lose both Thomas Partey and Granit Xhaka this summer.
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