Arsenal fear Mudryk repeat with £80m target

Steve Kay

• Updated: 11 May 2023 10:21 BST
• 3 min read

Confirmed

Arsenal believe they could be priced out of the transfer of West Ham midfielder Declan Rice in a repeat of the frustration they felt in January when they missed out on Mykhailo Mudryk.

The Gunners had earmarked Ukraine international Mudryk, then of Shakhtar Donetsk, as their leading target in the winter transfer window. Despite the winger flirting with them, the Emirates club allowed the player to move to Chelsea as they were unwilling to match the offer their rivals presented to Shakhtar.

Arsenal face similar frustration over Rice, FootballTransfers can confirm.

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The 24-year-old England international has made a transfer to Arsenal his leading summer priority, yet West Ham are determined to raise as much from his sale as possible, opening the door for other clubs to make a move.

Manager Mikel Arteta showed in the Mudryk case that he will not be drawn into bidding above his estimation of any player, though with West Ham apparently desperately trying to instigate a transfer war for Rice, the £80 million Arsenal are willing to pay may not be sufficient.

And there is plenty of competition in this case.

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Newcastle hold serious interest in Rice

Chelsea have been linked with a move for the West Ham captain in the summer, but it is FootballTransfers understanding that there are two clubs more seriously interested in the player than the Stamford Bridge side.

Newcastle offer the main threat to Arsenal, according to sources. The St. James’ Park side are ready to offer in the region of £90 million for the midfielder, which is higher than the Gunners’ £80m valuation of the player.

Eddie Howe’s side can also offer Rice Champions League football and a guaranteed starting berth.

Manchester United are the third side who could steal the former Chelsea academy player from the Gunners, according to our information.

FootballTransfers’ algorithm gives Rice an Estimated Transfer Value (ETV) of £55m (€63m), suggesting West Ham are hiking his price beyond a reasonable level, as Arsenal’s top-end valuation shows. Arteta called it right with Mudryk, though.