West Ham United have reportedly asked Arsenal to ‘do better’ this morning. It is understood the £105M Declan Rice deal was rejected following morning talks between the two clubs.
Claret and Hugh are contacting their top source at the club for confirmation.
Arsenal last night tabled a huge third bid for their Dec, comprising of £100 million in guaranteed cash. The deal was bulked-up with an extra £5 million in performance bonuses. However, the offer has not been accepted, mainly over the structure of the deal.
It is believed that Arsenal wish to pay the fee over a five-year period.West Ham would prefer the fee paid over 24 months and are hopeful of a resolution.
West Ham are on a watch-list for UEFA financial fair play. In order to remove themselves from the Euro naughty step, the Hammers need to harvest funds immediately. Therefore, Arsenal’s payment plan offer is not particularly useful.
£105M Rice deal rejected by West Ham owner David Sullivan
That being said, the fee itself is more than reasonable so perhaps a compromise can be found. £105 million would be a British record transfer fee for a home grown player.
The fact that there is still open dialogue between the two clubs would seem promising.
Manchester City’s next move will prove fascinating. Only yesterday, Pep Guardiola was said to be ‘confident’ of signing the West Ham captain. City have worked incredibly hard to try and convince ‘team Rice’ to join the champions.
Keep your eyes peeled on Claret & Hugh today . . . I suspect this fast moving story will change hourly and have us all constantly refreshing our browsers.