Arsenal are expected to make a formal bid worth £90m for West Ham captain Declan Rice.
The Gunners had their opening £80m offer plus add-ons – which would have been paid in slow instalments with a lot of tough contingencies attached to it – rejected by West Ham, who are holding out for £120m.
It is understood the Hammers would also accept £100m plus a player.
Arsenal are prepared to break their record transfer fee to land Rice – both their opening offer and this one surpass the £72m paid to sign Nicolas Pepe from Lille in 2019.
Manchester City and Manchester United are also interested in the 24-year-old.
Image:
Declan Rice could be on the move from the London Stadium this summer
Rice, who replaced Mark Noble as the Hammers’ skipper before the start of this season, has spent his entire professional career with the east London side.
The Gunners made bids for Brighton’s Moises Caicedo in the January transfer window and ultimately ended up signing Jorginho from London rivals Chelsea.
But Mikel Arteta, who mostly relied on Thomas Partey, Granit Xhaka and Martin Odegaard as his midfielders last season, remains keen to strengthen in that area of the field.
Arsenal in talks for Ajax defender Timber
Image:
Jurrien Timber was targeted by Man Utd last summer
Arsenal are in talks with Ajax over the signing of defender Jurrien Timber.
Discussions have been described as “very positive” and there appears to be a willingness from all parties to get a deal done.
Timber has two years left on his contract and is valued at around €50m (£42.8m).
Reports suggest one bid has already been rejected but Arsenal are working internally on a valuation and payment structure.
Timber is a player the Gunners looked at in January and they have been monitoring his progress over the past season as they look to increase competition in defensive positions.
The club are continuing to work on deals for West Ham captain Rice and Chelsea forward Kai Havertz.
It is understood there is encouragement all three players want to join.
Follow the summer transfer window with Sky Sports
Who will be on the move this summer when the transfer window opens on June 14 and closes at 11pm on September 1 in England and midnight in Scotland?
Keep up to date with all the latest transfer news and rumours in our dedicated Transfer Centre blog on Sky Sports’ digital platforms. You can also catch up with the ins, outs and analysis on Sky Sports News.
https://www.skysports.com/football/news/33694/12906028/declan-rice-arsenal-expected-to-bid-90m-for-west-ham-and-england-midfielder
