Morning all. It’s an early one. Sometimes, if I’ve got a crack of dawn start, I might occasionally prep some of the blog the night before.
However, given the growing trend for late night Orn Bombs, that’s not possible. And last night, David dropped a big one.
🚨 EXCLUSIVE: Arsenal have tonight submitted a massive offer to West Ham for England midfielder Declan Rice. Proposal is for £100m + £5m in add-ons – would be a record for a British player as #AFC try to agree deal with #WHUFC for top target @TheAthleticFC https://t.co/ZuFqkCbQcE
— David Ornstein (@David_Ornstein) June 27, 2023
As expected, Man City’s formal bid has sparked a response from Arsenal. A new offer of £100m + £5m in add-ons was submitted, and given the size of this one, you have to imagine it will be accepted. If it’s not, I don’t know how much more we can push, or how much more we should push.
Lost in the fervent desire to bring this player to the club is the sheer amount of money we’re talking about here. It’s an extraordinary fee we’re talking about. ONE HUNDRED MILLION POUNDS! I know, not my money, not your money, but still. It’s the kind of spending that has some implications for a ‘normal’ football club. Which is sort of what we are. We’re not backed by an owner who is giving us interest free loans. This is money that has to be paid back, even if KSE have done a lot to facilitate this bid – and the spending in previous windows.
If this gets done, with the Kai Havertz deal over the line already and ready for imminent announcement, as well as the Jurrien Timber signing (which is edging closer), Arsenal will have spent the guts of £200m on three players. That absolutely demonstrates how the manager is being backed, but make no mistake, we’re going to have find a way to offset some of that spending.
For example, in an ideal world, maybe you see what Folarin Balogun did during his loan spell and decide to give him a chance the following season. However, in the context of this summer, plus the January spending, and the big investments over the last two summers, your hand is forced a little bit. His stock is high, you can see that there is a place in the squad for him, but the financial realities mean you have to cash in. Perhaps people don’t want to hear that, but you can’t spend at this level without selling too. KSE are owners, not benefactors, transfer fees need to be paid, and even if you’re taking loans to buy at very reasonable rates, it’s not free money.
Anyway, we have yet to hear if West Ham will accept. If they do, I assume Man City will match what we’ve offered, and we’re in the scenario I outlined yesterday where it comes down to what the player wants. He has the decision make, and that’s what we’ll be waiting on next.
—
I’ve just noticed this: According to The Guardian’s Jacob Steinberg, the bid has not been accepted, but nor has it been rejected. More tweaking to the structure of the payments is required, it seems, and the Hammers are expecting another City bid. I suspect if we’re in the right ballpark, it shouldn’t be too difficult to get full acceptance, but there’s always the possibility that we could get gazumped by a club with deeper pockets.
Again, perhaps the will of the player will be the deciding factor. It feels like we’re in end-game territory though, so let’s see what the day brings.
—
As I mentioned above, Havertz is done. I think we might get an announcement today, so keep your eyes peeled for that one. We’ll have our usual new signing podcast for Patreon members when the Havertz thing is official, and a profile here on site too.
Right, that’s it for now. We’ll have any updates on Rice over on Arseblog News.
