Coming off of a stellar 22/23 campaign for West Ham, it is no surprise that Declan Rice is at the heart of a bidding war between two of the best teams in the league. MikelArteta’s Arsenal seemed destined to secure the 24-year-old’s services at the start of June, but Pep Guardiola’sneed for reinforcements at the heart of Manchester City’s midfield has led to West Ham receiving multiple bids for Rice, most recently an £80m bid with £10m in add-ons from City and a £75m bid with £15m in add-ons from the Gunnerswhich was rejected last week (as per David Ornstein & Fabrizio Romano). We look at where Rice should go and how he would fit into each team as they look to make title pushes in the 23/24 campaign.
Deccers to City?
With Rodri having ended the 22/23 campaign in the best form of his career, a move to Manchester City did not seem on the cards for Rice. However, it is no secret that Pep likes to operate with a large squad depth, and having Rice available would release some of the workload and pressure on Rodri who appeared in 56 games in all competitions for Manchester City in the last campaign.
Alternatively, playing under Pep could allow Rice to develop and showcase his less talked about abilities. With Gundogan departing the Citizens for Barcelona, they now need a midfielder who is able to carry the ball forward and link the play to the attack, whilst also providing solid cover. In the 22/23 campaign, Rice completed the 2nd most ball carries in the whole league (400) and was also 1st in the ball-carrying distance (7km in total). With a very good passing range too, could we see Rice become a more complete midfielder under Pep?
Firing the Gunners to the title?
With Arsenal having come mightily close to lifting their first premier league title in almost two decades, MikelArteta will be relishing the opportunity to use the transfer window to maximise the Gunners’ chances going into the new campaign. Their primary transfer target this window is Declan Rice, and it is clear to see why. Despite having a fantastic first half of the campaign, Thomas Partey was among those whose performances seemed to have curtailed off post-world cup. With rumours flying around that he could be heading to Juve or Saudi Arabia, Rice seems like the perfect long term replacement in the holding midfield position.
The 24 year old ranked 1st in most possession won in the 22/23 campaign, regaining possession a staggering 139 times! He also ranked 5thamongst midfielders for most passes completed in the opposition half, and along with the aforementioned ability to carry the ball, he would be able to replicate the line-breaking passes and runs by Partey, which were so crucial for the Gunners last season.
With a spot seemingly open for Rice at both clubs, which option do you think he should take?
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