Declan Rice is excited by what Arsenal have achieved this season amid rumours that Mikel Arteta wants to sign him.
Writing in his weekly Reading The Game column for The Independent, Miguel Delaney believes that the Gunners appeal to the England international.
The Times reported this week that Arsenal have made Rice their top summer target and are confident of beating Chelsea to the punch now.
The reported transfer fee required is £80 million, which would be a club record but less than the £150 million the Hammers were quoting last summer.
Rice ‘captivated’ by Arsenal
Delaney wrote: “Manchester United have also resurrected interest in Declan Rice but that position is no longer a priority due to Casemiro’s immense impact.
“That might be good timing for such a deal, too, because Old Trafford would no longer be the player’s first preference.
“Rice is captivated by what Arsenal are doing. It shows much has transformed at the club.”
As Delaney references, even at the start of the season, Arsenal would not have been seen as a viable destination for Rice.
They have not been in the Champions League yet under Mikel Arteta, but at the halfway stage of the season, a top four spot is all but guaranteed already.
By the time they step up their bidding for Rice, Arsenal may well have won the Premier League title and could well be the only London club offering Champions League football next season.
That would make them a very attractive option for Rice, although it cannot be ruled out that Chelsea would come in with a monster offer and huge contract to try and gazump the Gunners.
