The future of Declan Rice has been a topic of discussion in England for months. The 24-year-old international seemed to be on his way to Arsenal, but Manchester City hopes to hijack the transfer. The national champion is reportedly preparing an opening bid.
City is also bothering Arsenal outside the lines and wants to hijack a mega transfer
That Rice is going to close the door at West Ham United behind him can hardly be called a surprise. Chairman David Sullivan indicated after the overall victory in the Conference League that the midfielder has a commitment to leave. Arsenal is willing to break the club record and made an offer of almost 105 million euros including bonuses.
That turned out not to be enough to reach an agreement with West Ham. The Gunners are expected to return with a new offer, but it may just be too late. The Athletic knows that City is also emphatically in the race. Pep Guardiola’s side investigated a possible transfer earlier this month and are now taking action.
Opening bid
It is expected that City will knock on the door of West Ham with an opening bid on Thursday. The question is whether that proposal is high enough to convince The Hammers. Rice still has a one-year contract in the capital. West Ham have a unilateral option to extend that commitment for a further year.
Adidas goes wrong: new home shirts Arsenal removed from sale
Arsenal’s new home shirt pays homage to The Invincibles, the team who went undefeated in the 2003/04 season. Due to an error in the design, the shirts have already been removed from sale.
At the beginning of this century, Arsenal delivered an unprecedented achievement by finishing the 2003/04 season without defeat. That gave the team of that time, the nickname The Invincibles. The results from that year are reflected in the new home shirt, but an Arsenal supporter commented that the series was not complete.
Clothing sponsor Adidas forgot to mention six of the 38 results. The embroidery of the ‘authentic’ shirt, which costs 127 euros, is missing four victories and two draws. The error does not affect the ‘fan’ shirt, which has a retail price of 92 euros. “The design flaw will be corrected as soon as possible,” Adidas said in a statement.
Supporters who have already bought a shirt will get their money back.
