Declan Rice looks set to leave West Ham in the summer transfer window with Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United all interested in signing the Hammers captain
Former Arsenal defender Mikael Silvestre believes the 24-year-old midfielder would fit in at the Emirates Stadium ‘very well’ and ‘adapt quite quickly’ to Arteta’s tactics. The French icon told bettingexpert.com: “I think Declan Rice would fit very well into Arsenal’s way of playing.
“I don’t think he would find it difficult and he would adapt quite quickly. He is a proper engine and he is very good on the ball as well.
“I don´t think there would be a particular issue with him adapting if he is arriving. I think he would perform very well just as he does for West Ham and England.”
According to transfer guru Fabrizio Romano, Arsenal held a transfer meeting in January where a summer move for Rice was heavily discussed. Speaking about the Gunners’ failed move for Chelsea signing Mykhailo Mudryk on the House of Champions YouTube channel, Romano said: “I’m told that right after the Mudryk story, Arsenal had a meeting.
“A meeting planning for the present – (Leandro) Trossard, (Jakub) Kiwior and more – and the future. And in that meeting, Declan Rice was mentioned also as a possibility, a player they really like.”
Reports have also stated that Rice is currently leaning towards a move to the Gunners because of the prospect of playing for Arteta. The north London outfit are said to have made Rice their primary summer target, with the West Ham captain seen as the perfect candidate to challenge first-choice holding midfielder Thomas Partey and box-to-box maestro Granit Xhaka.