According to the Guardian, Arsenal are closing in on a deal for Declan Rice that could cost over £100 million if add-on clauses are triggered.
News of the Gunners’ interest in the England international first broke in January and despite several other clubs holding their own conversations with the player, we’ve always been considered favourites for his signature.
It is claimed talks are progressing smoothly and “confidence that the deal will be finalised soon”.
West Ham chairman David Sullivan confirmed on Thursday that Rice would be allowed to leave this summer after the player had made it clear he was keen on a change of scenery.
Arsenal’s record transfer remains the £72 million paid to Lille in 2019 for Nicolas Pepe. Rice will trump that by some margin if it goes through although the Gunners are confident they can recoup a solid amount via player sales in the coming months.
Granit Xhaka will move to Bayer Leverkusen for £13 million, Pablo Mari will sign for Monza for £6 million while Kieran Tierney and Folarin Balogun are likely to be allowed to depart should offers upwards of £30 million land on Edu’s desk.
Cash could also be raised by the sales of the aforementioned Pepe, Cedric Soares, Nuno Tavares, Auston Trusty, Sambi Lokonga and Charlie Patino.
Elsewhere, Fulham owe us more money for Bernd Leno and there’s a sell-on clause in Matteo Guendouzi’s contract that will be triggered if, as expected, he leaves Marseille this summer.
In terms of other potential recruits, Moises Caicedo remains a high priority and Mikel Arteta wants to recruit another right-back with Leicester’s Timothy Castagne and Real Valladolid’s Ivan Fresneda both options.
Its happening! Midfield rebuild incoming. Rice, hopefully Caicedo and Odegaard… WOW!
Great news on Rice. Rice and Caicedo would be a dream. I must admit, when we played Brighton, it looked like they were using Caicedo as we were using Zinny (plagerising pricks!). That would be a really handy card to play if we sign Caicedo and gives us some options at RB and potential to play Tierney a bit more on the left as a direct LB (with Caicedo as the inverted RB).
We tried Thomas at RB in the last 2 games, maybe that’s the shape of things to come.
Rice, Caicedo and Odegaard would be a nightmare to play against.
Agree with your second sentence, not so much with your first. I think playing Thomas at RB was a stopgap, ala Xhaka at LB last year or the year before. I don’t see that becoming a regular thing.
I do, actually. I don’t get where the Partey exit rumors are emanating from? Man can play as a CDM, CM, and a RB from what we know from his time at Atleti. He is actually quick, comfortable on the ball, can locate a pass, and was the best CDM in the league until Saliba’s injury. Arteta is keeping him. Whether he has the hamstrings to operate from that RB position, we’ll have to wait and see, but Zinny isn’t asked to bomb forward as much as White was, so, Partey from that side, with a more conservative LB on… Read more »
While he struggled in the final 1/4 of the season, partey was a huge reason why we got to where we did. For the first 3/4 of the season he was the best DM in the league and arguably the world. With a summer of rest he’ll be back to his best next season and he should be the starting DM next year, hopefully next to rice.
Who’s up for a Rice Partey? McCheese is for sure…
This season, Partey was as good as anyone I have ever seen at transitioning the ball, under pressure, from the back into the attack. He seemed always to get it on the half turn, immediately make a good pass forward or, if that wasn’t on, carry it himself to draw defenders and open space in front of him. I think you’re right that Saliba’s absence was part of the explanation for his loss of form. I am convinced that he was also carrying an injury. But even with those factors, that loss of form was so sudden and so drastic–he… Read more »
The ‘Partey Exit’ rumours – such as they are – are emanating from the increasingly tiresome section of our fanbase who have still got their Europa heads on and still can’t quite get their heads around Arsenal having a big squad and paying big money for big players.
Quite frankly, their small-club talk is beginning to bore the shit out of me……🙄
Partey and Jorginho together in midfield sounds pretty good on paper. Wolves didn’t seem to enjoy it much.
Partey looked a bit shaky defending but Zinchenko is not the best at that either. He might get better if we persist with it.
Don’t know, expect we’ll find out. Will be interesting.
It’s not a stopgap, it’s another option if zinny isn’t available.
Rice and Caicedo are very good signings. In line with the two Plan As, I would be really glad if we could sign Palinha from Fulham. He’s grossly underrated, but would probably only be a viable option if we were to let Elneny or Partey go.
I still think we need a technically gifted bully upfront, a Giroud type of player. We’d see the best out of everyone around him.
I agree, it’s happening. Avalanche, Rams, and now the Nuggets, KSE is now looking to Arsenal to complete the quadruple.
Seen!
Add mbappe
The pRice is right!
If the add-ons include things like winning the PL and the UCL, and we have to pay them, then I say it will all be worth it.
Let’s hope we’re not getting rinsed over the Rice deal.
I see your turning to your staple humour McCheese?
That’s right, Daveo, though it never boils over into anything mean-spirited.
You’re not one to go against the grain
Settle down, you two! The proof will obviously be in the pudding.
He’s a generational paella.
He’s just trying to curry favour.
I feel like I’m reading the comments in The Guardian.
👍 😂
Shit! I was just about to make this wisecrack myself (in my mind). So I’ll simply pretend it didn’t cut any (R)ice with me.
You should always rinse rice 😉
worth it..!
Dream of a Ricedø trio.
Worth £5 million more than MacAlistair, no more, and MacAlistair was a better player who sold for £35 million!
they play entirely different positions
MacAlistair is a different type of player. Explain your thinking?
McALister is both a DMC and a box to box midfielder. He has rated 7.4 on average when playing as a DMC, where as Rice averages below 7. They both have a 1 to 2 tackle success rate per 90 minutes, the difference is MacAlistair boasts a high MoM record, he passes more forward balls, unlike Rice who passes more sideways and backward. Oh yeh, he has contributed more goals, more than twice as much as Rice and still matches him on heat map and defence duties. The facts are out there. I am not saying he is not a… Read more »
I also don’t get why everyone seems so happy we’re just going to spend this insane amount for spending’s sake. He (Rice) seems like a really good player, and I’m sure in our system and under Artera’s coaching his stats will get better, but more than 100m? I mean if this is really the player Artera has identified as the missing piece in his puzzle then sure, do it, empty the coffers, pay over the odds and accept that thats how f*cked up the market is, but then I seriously hope he’s right because this kind of sum isn’t one… Read more »
I agree Ebo.
I’m very up for Rice joining us, but 100mil is an insanely big fee. Alot of pressure to live up to that.
Not really our style to splash cash like that but maybe as you say it’s the final piece in the jigsaw, so let’s do it hahah
I’m more excited by a possible deal for Caicedo, TBH. If we could get a big, technically gifted B2B player, I would deem it a more successful and needed transfer than over £100m for Rice.
Massive transfers like this are always a risk I guess, but in this case we’re talking about someone with over 200 prem starts already at just 24 years old, during which time he’s been incredibly consistent for club and country and become WH’s most important player and leader. His stats are amazing, the eye test is amazing, he’s been doing it in the league for years. For me it’s about the least risky £100m transfer you can get
FFS.
”We can’t afford it” – It’s not your money!! 😂
What would you rather Arsenal do? Not sign him, keep the money, play it ‘safe’ and hand over the title to City again?
What is the fucking point of getting to where we are now if the project, as Arteta sees it, is prevented from being completed just to appease people who still can’t grasp the basic principles of market forces?
Honestly, some of you on here make my teeth itch. 🙄
Have never understood this tired trope of “it’s not your money.” Of course it isn’t our money. But our club/owner don’t have the limitless funds that a few other clubs/owners do, so we have to be smarter and better than the others to ever beat them. Using the Rice example specifically, one can be excited about getting the player AND anxious about the risk associated with the transfer fee. KSE appears to be all in on the opportunity at hand to win things, which is very exciting, but this deal flies in the face of the very successful recent transfer… Read more »
You lost me when you began pleading poverty on behalf of the Kroenkes – which is absolutely ridiculous. Aside from his wife being the heiress to the Walmart fortune, Stan Kroenke is already a billionaire. Financial commentators in the US have been making informed predictions that Kroenke’s personal wealth is going to expand at least two or three fold in the coming years – and that was before his various other sporting enterprises enjoyed their recent on field success. Put simply, the man isn’t short of a dollar or two. Funding Arteta’s project at the Emirates is probably the least… Read more »
At what point did I plead poverty? The basic point remains the same – where the money’s coming from (for every club) matters. Not because of the owner’s financial position and what they can afford, but because of their willingness to keep spending – two completely different things. Right now, that willingness to spend is high, and that’s great. Two £100m busts down the line? Probably a lot less, in my opinion. And that’s my concern, not how it affects my personal bank account (which is of course not at all, and thus entirely irrelevant).
Stan is worth 13billion, his wife is worth 9 billion.
His wife is irrelevant – she’s not investing in Arsenal. But since you brought it up, he also owns an NBA team worth almost as much as Arsenal and an NFL team worth three times as much, among others. If you narrow the scope to the big teams, Arsenal comprise about 20% of his sports portfolio’s value. Assuming investment is proportionate (it’s not) we’d be down to about $2.5b, of which 4% would be going to a single player’s transfer fee. Even for an obscenely rich man, not insignificant.
Sorry, forgot currency conversion – more like 5%.
Doesn’t matter how you divide it up, he can afford it.
Well I picture the perfectly realistic scenario of Stan and Ann at the breakfast table where Stan says:
“Listen poppet, the fans in London, I forget the team but you know those Brits I bought a few years ago, they are making noise about some local guy called Rice. Problem is he costs 100 million. I think it’s in British dollar too. You couldn’t lend me by any chance?”
Ann – “Of course I can hunny, pay it back whenever.”
I don’t think his wife is going to bankroll Arsenal though.
But it’s not for spendings sake, is it?
We’re trying to build a squad capable of giving those sky blue twats up the M1 a taste of the own medicine – and giving those idiots on Sky something more to talk about rather than than remaining The Church of Pep.
Stop looking at the money and start looking at the team.
It’s what football fans traditionally do……
Macallister had a buyout clause…..that’s the only reason he went for that price. You would know this if you read anything about that transfer. And then you have to consider premier league tax and English tax, so you get £100 mil. If a different team were getting him it would be the same price
Different players thrive differently under different coaches.
Let’s hope this works for us, if the deal eventually gets through. .
If Rice can perform at his current level under Moyes, then I’m pretty sure Arteta can harvest the Rice much better.
Rice v Mac (22-23): interceptions 63 v 22, Clearances 55 v 10, Headed clearances 32 v 2, Aerial battles won 37 v 25, Fouls conceded 23 v 35, Passes forward 607 v 454. Rice is a more dominant CM and leader that should help us win silverware next season.
I enjoyed reading that comparison, thanks for posting.
Just one thing you say about Rice passing more sideways and backwards – are there stats to back that up, or is it just your observation?
My missus is West Ham so Im a regular London Stadium visitor & I can say he does seem to love a sideways pass & a point(ala Flamini), one game in 21/22 season against Watford, every pass he seemed to make was sideways for the entire 90. I’m sure with players more on his level around him & a front 4 that actually move, he’ll play a lot more telling forward passes
if macalister was as good he would be at Liverpool. if rice was not worth it we wouldnt be hearing about other top clubs hovering and trying to sneak him off our hands. lets use some common sense. brighton have better players and play better football. naturally his stats would be better for control and attack. we can compare end of next season, i back arteta he hasnt got any of his big signings wrong, im not sure why some of yall make a fuss. white, partey, zinchenko, jesus, ramsdale, tomiyasu, oodegard all brought in for first team and have… Read more »
Liverpool got a good deal on MacAllister but Rice is a far better player with a much higher ceiling. We will be incredibly lucky to have him, I just didn’t think it was possible until a few months ago. Exciting times!
I’m keeping everything crossed that we can sign Caicedo as well.
With big Moises in front of the back four and Declan allowed to link up with Odegaard and Co up front….that is a fucking mental proposition. If it happens, they will have good cause to be worried up at the Etihad, Pep or no Pep, Haaland or no Haaland.
COYG
MacAllister is a good player and might have gone for a little bit more–or significantly less–if he hadn’t had a good World Cup. The entire Argentina team got a price boost. In reality, I thought they had a lot of decent players, some good ones, and one from another planet.
MacAlister has a release clause which is why Liverpool getting him so cheap (like out $40m plus 1p Suarez bid)
Yes. Transfer value is not just about footballing ability. There are so many factors. MacAlistair has come out of nowhere (relatively) while Rice has been known for years. No he’s not twice or three times the player, but I think he is better, and his marketing value is probably more than 3 times that of MacAlistair. So the higher fee may be warranted. But agreed it is a risk. That he is the same rough price as Bellingham (a better player, with higher upside IMHO) proves that, but I think it’s worth it.
Agree Bellingham is technically better, but Rice has leadership qualities that’ll be much needed with Xhaka’s departure.
In Artedu I trust.
I must be the only one who thought this: Bellingham left a great deal to be desired in his defensive awareness playing for England. Obviously, he is very young and technically suburb and will get even better–but right now, Rice makes more of a difference for Arsenal.
You’re not the only one.
The hype around Bellingham is OTT.
He’s good but not that good – not yet anyway.
Declan Rice, on the other hand, is a special talent, no two ways about it.
Rice’s qualities are far more important than bellinghams. while jude is technically superior, that winners mentality, leadership and loyalty to the cause is far more important than just technical ability. Its why united under roy keane leadership were so successful, he was definitley beaten by many many playerts on technical ability but his presence and leadership is what catapulted united. its why city are so successful, attitude and personality matter more than being slightly better technically.
And a year left.
Ah, Alasdair. We should sign his mate, Farquhar!
not only do monza have to pay us for pablo mari, but their fascist owner kicked it too 🙂
Good times!
wow you labour nitwits are a bitter lot!
“How dare you celebrate a fascist pedophile’s death??!!”
You should always celebrate the death of a rich prick
Some rumblings that Mbappe won’t sign a new PSG contract, so they’ll have to cash in this summer.
Can we dream…
No need to dream.
No need for poisonous players.
The 30+ goals a season would outweigh any so-called poison.
Lot of our fanbase also called Xhaka poison at one time. And Saliba after a couple of interviews which were taken out of context. Trossard was labelled a bad influence for downing tools at Brighton to force a transfer.
Of course he’ll go to Real Madrid anyway but what a statement signing that would be for Arsenal.
The Toxic aspect of Mbappé is over estimated. PSG is just terrible at managing stars and egos.
But we can’t afford Mbappé and he doesn’t really fit Arteta’s style. Because :
1) He’s not gonna commit long time and love the club.
2) He’s many things, but he’s not a hard worker.
Mbappe hates the Arsenal: when we missed out on top four last season, he was celebrating online.
Bollocks to him.
Oh I didn’t see that. What did he do/say?
He tweeted something along the lines of us missing out on top four and going back to being a mid table club ‘where we belonged.’
Twat.
Is that for real? What’s his beef with us?
Fuck knows. But yes, that’s for real.
I never forget a bad word said about the Arsenal….. 😉
I really really hope we get both him and caicedo because if it came down to a choice between the two, I’m choosing caicedo.
Me too, but they’ve both proven themselves in the PL and both young enough to throw money at – low risk signings unlike Mudryk or Pepe.
Not worth £100 million when Bellingham sold for £88 million and he was 5 years younger and a much better DMC/Box to box versatile midfielder who defended well and carried the ball forward. Even MacAlistair sold for just £35 million and he was also a DMC/Box to box versatile midfielder. When you compare Rice and MacAlistair they should be all the same price. daveg Reply to Sunglasses 5 minutes ago McALister is both a DMC and a box to box midfielder. He has rated 7.4 on average when playing as a DMC, where as Rice averages below 7. They both… Read more »
My friend there is no objective yardstick against which all players can be measured and valued. Every transaction takes place between a selling club and a buying club, and between them they decide the price. What matters isn’t “he cost £100m”, what matters is “Arsenal valued him at £100m”. Which suggests Arteta and Edu see £100m worth of value in him, TO ARSENAL, in terms of pursuing our strategic goals. Meanwhile the reason we didn’t go for Mac Allister is because he wasn’t considered to have that worth to Arsenal as Rice would have. You’re making it seem like Mac… Read more »
Top post, brilliantly put. 👍🍺
Whether or not it’ll have any credence on the pass-the-brain-cell hair-shirt mob on here, who seemingly cannot grasp our current situation and persist in looking for negatives in everything, is another matter entirely….🙄
To be honest I’d have more sympathy for the naysayers if we were a club like United who just splash cash willy-nilly on anything that lumbers. I can understand the idea of wanting to be cautious in the context of players like Maguire, Lukaku, Antony, and in our case Pepe. But part of the reason I feel safe in making a comment like this is because I think Edu and Arteta have proven they do have a plan and they are looking for very specific attributes. The fact they’ve proven themselves with £7m transfers like Martinelli and even £50m transfers… Read more »
Very well said. I’ll add that Rice is not only an England international, he may well be their next captain. That comes at a price, too.
going to be mad to see that Arsenal are the ones to end the england captain bias with the refs!
A return to the international days of Tony Adam’s and Euro ‘96.
The last time England had a truly decent manager and team.
*Adams
Top answer
further to yes’s point. jude may not do as well if he moves to the EPL, as he did for dortmund, look at sancho. he could also thrive. key point is declan is premier league proven that adds value, his leadership qualities adds value. it doesnt matter if jude is technically superior, we have alot of technical ability. we now need to match this with physicality and pace. he is certanli more quicker than xhaka, if this imporves our overally efficiency say by 5%, it means 5% more goals, less conceded, more possession gained, less defensive actions, more attacking actions.… Read more »
Where to start with this….? 😂
If it goes through and it’s not there yet, then it’ll be interesting to see how much is the up front fee and how much is add-ons?
If he signs and we have to pay all the add-ons eventually then maybe it’ll be seen as money well spent?
It will be very nice to see Rice in an Arsenal shirt next season but that price is too high. As I’ve said before he’s worth about 70 to 80 million quid and no more. And it’s great that we’re signing a guy who was club captain: we desperately need leadership in the squad. Hopefully Rice will help to prevent another pathetic bottle job at the end of next season. He looks like a man and not a boy. BTW: I really hope we keep Folarin Balogun. I’ve got a feeling he could be a real star in the future.… Read more »
I agree with all this except your first paragraph Fats. In today’s crazy world of football deals he may well be “worth” 100, especially if a decent chunk is incentive bonuses.
It’s no longer a case of ‘how much is he worth?’, it’s just ‘are Man City interested?’ If so, they’ll get him. Greedy, cheating FFPs!
Know what you mean but if we don’t pay a ‘hundred odd’ million for him then someone else will.
I feel Rice is more than just a player, I think his influence off the pitch is also massive and something Arteta/Edu see.
We’d all be pig sick if we only offered 80 million and then bloody UTD or someone went and got him for a bit more so I’m really pleased we’re getting this done. No messing about.
Also really hope we integrate Balogun into the squad this season.
Eddie doesn’t score when he doesn’t start games, so Balogun could be just the impact striker sub we need.
Though I wouldn’t sell Eddie this summer, I’d keep both for now just to see how things play out.
Mate, if you won the National Lottery, you’d moan that the money was paid directly into your account on Monday and not via a suitcase of used notes on Tuesday.
Rubbish!!
I’d want the suitcase of money on the Monday – no later!
😂
Given the … ahem… opposing opinions you receive on here, you’re a good sport!
(This is not to say I agree with you, of course 😀)
Xhaka should be sold for £30m and above, why are we allowing him to leave for only £13m? I would rather keep him for depth since we have Champions League next season.
Age, contract duration, players desire to move to Germany
It would seem Arsenal are keeping the price low in order to facilitate a smooth transaction – and that is very much a policy to reward the player for his efforts in the past couple of years – The Arsenal Way, if you will. That said, a player of Xhaka’s calibre really should bring in £30m+, but, to a degree, you can understand the club’s motives here. Xhaka has been outstanding for this football club – I think we should keep him – but the player clearly wants a new challenge and if he no longer figures in Arteta’s plans,… Read more »
He’s going to Chelsea
No he isn’t.
Sorry.
Bye. 👋
That price includes the ‘hit the ground running tax’, because he won’t have to move house.
He has a 10month old baby boy with his long term partner, so it will be likely more weighted to staying in London and even more likely he wouldn’t move abroad at this stage.
Honestly..I’m not sold on Rice, especially at that sort of money. Selling Xhaka for 13m is also insane, he scored 14 goals this season. For me, Caicedo has more potential than Rice. Perhaps we are trying to get both players in but I can’t see that happening.
I agree, it’s madness, the prices Arsenal are both buying an selling players for. Other teams must be laughing at the way we do business.
90m+ / 100m is a lot. But comparing a 24 year old Rice to 30 year old Xhaka tells you everything. Rice has one more ‘prime years’ sale in him to recoup outlay if necessary. Xhaka does not. That is half of the value difference. The other half is the English up charge.
It is madness. We’ve apparently been selling & buying players (disastrously!) this transfer window without the club telling anyone apart from you.
Those hypothetical other teams must be, potentially, creasing up
Our selling needs vast improvement but our investment – notwithstanding the Mudryk/Caicedo bidding cock up in January – has been excellent.
Look at the players we have brought in during the past two or three years; Ramsdale, Saliba, White, Tommi, Gabriel, Partey, Odegaard, Martinelli, Jesus, Zinchenko, Trossard.
Add those to the Hale End boys and you have a team that just missed out on the title.
And you think rival fans are laughing at us for our recruitment?
Listen Edu to my advice. You missed out on Bellingham who sold for £88 million, you also missed out on MacAlistair who sold for £35 million. IYou know what they say, ” if you snooze you loose”. So let’s hope you snooze through this deal and same up next year to sign Rice for Free!. Ahh Bliss, so simple,, even a monkey can work that one out. Hmm either £100 million this year or free next year.No brainer. Just get Caicedo and a world class defence please then get Rice for free next year, as he only wants to play… Read more »
What on earth is going on with this comment section.. Did reddit come over here?
I blame EA Sports……..🙄
we are selling Flo? that will be a big mistake!! he is going to light up the international scene soon. Arsenal should find a way to integrate him into the team.
I’ve been saying this all along……..
I would swap him for Mbappe
He doesn’t want to be integrated into the team, he wants to be a regular starter, that’s why he’s going to represent USMNT and is looking for a new team where he can be the main man. We need to get top money for him and make sure we have clauses in the contract. There are apparently a few teams in for him so this should be possible.
What about a player who can be substituted for zinny?
Get Caciedo and you can invert the system (Caciedo RB) and play Tierney as the more direct fullback from time to time.
It’s time to flex our financial muscles 💪 to show our intent to do well in the league and CL
Why would be sell patino? Loan him out sure, but at this stage is there any reason to think he isn’t a good prospect to be in the team on a 3-5 year trajectory?
Patino no doubt wants to play and players usually want to move to a club on a permanent transfer. If Patino has his mind set for a transfer it has to happen because it would be impossible to have him sign a new contract at that point.
It’s always a shame to lose academy players but Arsenal have really done very good job in recent years when it comes to academy and player value. Starting with Iwobi and now culminating in Balogun, Patino etc, this is a good way to generate money as well.
Sell him but put in a buy back clause.
It does seem a strange decision, if it is indeed him that wants a transfer
There seems to be a pathway into our first team for him over the next 2 or 3 seasons with Xhaka leaving and the ages of Partey, Jorginho and Elneny
It’s a long, long way back to a top club once you’ve dropped down a level on a permanent transfer
Agents need to earn money, players need to be moved. Sometimes it makes me wonder about advice given to young players, he’s the one who wants to move. Hopefully we can get decent money for him, with a couple of clauses for the future.
The Nuggets just won, time to ask KSE to spend big while they are celebrating
While £100,000,000 for a player with a year left is quite extortionate Rice could pretty much pick any club in the world, he’s still relatively young and just about to enter his peak. Coming from a “smaller” club too they will simply want as much as they can possibly squeeze out for him knowing there are plenty of willing suitors. We basically have to meet the asking price as soon as possible if this is going to happen. From the billion and one articles already published on his interest in moving to the Emirates at least it seems the will… Read more »
It would make sense for both rice and caicedo if we shift to a 352 like pep has been using re ently, with white tucking in to CB or covering RB, caicedo as DM while covering CB or RB, and rice as the other DM to collect and distribute the ball from base.
Rice, Rice, Baby… 😍
I hate the insane prices they cost and crazy amounts that players earn, however I am resigned to the fact that if we want to compete at the very top of the game and try to overhaul City they are a necessary evil. I just hope that the club always remains a self sustaining business.
Rice RIce baby!
Please make it happen… fast
Get Rice at all costs. The football market has become crazy. Remember what Antony cost United? Or Both Mudryk and Enzo Fernandes? The only way to dislodge City is to get quality players like Rice. I would go one-step further and bring Caicedo too. That’s the only way we are anywhere close to City. After last season, I’m not settling for top 4.
100 million is too much for Rice. He is not worth more than 50 million. We should be smarter in the market. Look at Brighton and their recruitment. Rice is a good player but way overhyped.
NMFM! Mate!
(Not my f’in money!)
The reasons why I don’t mind Rice for 100mil: 1. It’s a statement signing, telling other clubs, the Chelseas and the Man untds and the Bayerns out there that when the Arsenal want a man they have the ability to get them. 2. The 20 odd extra mil we paid for him can easily be recuperated by the marketteability of the played. This lad is gonna be future england captain..he is tall he is a good looking bloke. He’s gonna sell jerseys so honestly guys he’s gonna recoup that extra cash we paid for him. 3. We need him. With… Read more »
Ridiculous the prices being paid these days
So selling Xhaka, Mari, Tierney & Balogun is just about enough to buy Caicedo (70ish million?).
That’s not too bad considering 2 of them were not part of this years team and Tierney barely played. So the lost to the team man powerwise is minimal and it’s a big boost player qualitywise.
What is an example of an add on? I really have no idea. Thanks
If we (Arsenal) win the Premiership or the Champions League (or both!) West Ham will receive a further payment from us.
That kind of thing.