Declan Rice has officially left West Ham United in preparation for his anticipated £105 million ($137 million) move to Arsenal, the club has confirmed. The 24-year-old England international will go for a British record transfer price, according to the east London club. Meanwhile, West Ham’s chairman, David Sullivan, claims that his organization was compelled to permit Rice to go during this transfer window.
The Athletic stated earlier this month that after neighboring London club Arsenal agreed to a fee of £100 million plus a potential £5 million in add-ons, the attacking midfielder was reportedly given permission to pass a physical and finalize personal terms. Rice, who made 245 appearances for West Ham after graduating from their academy, says the team he joined at age 14 would “always be in my heart” in a letter to the club’s fans that was published on the club’s official website.
Declan Rice has been acquired by Arsenal in a £105 million move from West Ham. The teams had been haggling over how the payments would be structured, but the England midfielder has officially finished moving across London. A British player’s Premier League record transfer price was paid for Rice. He has agreed to a five-year contract that will keep him with the team through 2028, with an additional year’s option.
“We’re really happy that Declan is joining us,” Arsenal’s manager Mikel Arteta stated. “He is a footballer of extraordinary talent who has been representing England and the Premier League at a high level for a number of seasons.” Declan is undoubtedly providing quality to the team, and as an excellent player, he has a lot of potential for success.” The Arsenal team is scheduled to depart for the United States on Sunday in preparation for the club’s preseason.
Will This Be The Biggest Summer Signing?
The extent Arsenal will go to in order to sign Rice may baffle some, but from the club’s perspective, signing the West Ham captain during this transfer window is essential. Declan Rice, a midfielder for West Ham United, was bought for £105 million ($133 million), outbidding Manchester City’s first offer of £90 million.
This occurs after they surprisingly competed with City until the end of the season for the 2022–23 Premier League title. In this window, that was Arsenal’s third bid for the England international. All were far more expensive than the club’s previous record outgoing transfer price of £72 million for Nicolas Pepe in August 2019, and they all reflect the club’s outlook for the next campaign.
Rice, a 24-year-old West Ham player who started 190 of his 204 league games and guided them to victory this month’s Europa Conference League final, has continued last summer’s strategy. Rice has started each of England’s 12 games in the past two big tournaments. The focus of Arsenal’s previous two summer transfer windows has been on team building. However, they have reached a point where they must add several high-caliber players to the same position in order to advance further than they did the previous year and increase the diversity of their offense.
For Arsenal to advance in these areas, Rice is essential. The sporting director Edu Gaspar and Arteta were both aware of this, which is why they exerted so much pressure. Rice has always been Arsenal’s top objective, to start. Second, the board recognized and supported manager Mikel Arteta’s constant rhetoric in press conferences about the need to “nail the recruitment” this summer.” The board authorized what would be a record-breaking salary for any British player.
