caughtoffside
·17 January 2023
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·17 January 2023
Arsenal have held internal discussions over the potential transfer of Declan Rice, Fabrizio Romano has confirmed in his exclusive CaughtOffside column today.
The West Ham midfielder has been one of the top performers in the Premier League in recent years, and it seems inevitable that he’ll move to a big six club before too long.
Chelsea have long been linked with Rice due to his spell with the Blues as a youngster, and Romano says they still appreciate the player, though it seems Arsenal are also eyeing up the 24-year-old.
The Gunners currently have Thomas Partey and Granit Xhaka in great form in midfield, but they lack depth behind those two, with some doubts over Mohamed Elneny and Alberti Sambi Lokonga.
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“I’m told that nothing will be decided now for Declan Rice, also because the player is not leaving in January as things stand,” Romano said.
“But for sure Arsenal have an interest, as has been reported, and they discussed Declan internally. He’s appreciated by many clubs including Chelsea. But again, it will take time to see where Declan will go; no discussions have taken place on the player’s side yet.
“Ben Jacobs recently stated in his column here that Rice’s transfer valuation may have fallen to around the £70-75million mark.”
It would be some statement if Arsenal could sign a big name like Rice, so it will be interesting to see how this saga develops in the weeks and months ahead.