Arsenal face a crucial week in their transfer pursuit of Declan Rice with a third bid set to officially arrive soon. Manchester City stepping up their interest has resulted in the Gunners needing to ensure a new proposal comes close to West Ham's demands in order to get the deal over the line with Rice's preference still said to be Emirates Stadium.
Despite Man City, off the back of a treble, likely being favourites for his signature, football.london understands that the Gunners will beat them to Rice if they either table an offer that exceeds £100million or one which guarantees a significant fee to be paid upfront.
Arsenal also look to have been handed another boost by Man City's clear stance on the 24-year-old. The Mirror are reporting that City will only launch an official bid if the 24-year-old gives them assurances that he wants to join them.
RB Leipzig centre-back Josko Gvardiol has agreed personal terms for a move to Etihad Stadium and negotiations are now expected to begin to reach an agreement on a fee, with the German outfit, like West Ham, holding out for close to £100million.
READ MORE: Arsenal news and transfers LIVE: Third Declan Rice bid, Timber agreement, Smith Rowe message
Amid this ongoing saga, Rice appears to be remaining relaxed and has also continued posting on social media with his latest a two-word message on Instagram.
In the image is himself and West Ham attacker Said Benrahma after the duo helped the club win the Europa Conference League, with Rice captioning the post: "[Algerian flag emoji, crown emoji] my brother."
A new interview with Spanish outlet Marca saw manager Mikel Arteta questioned on numerous transfer topics which included a question on Rice. "I can't talk about players who are not in the club," Arteta responded after being asked if the England international was worth the fee being demanded by the Hammers. "I prefer not to say anything."
