Arsenal ‘set to open talks’ for ‘club record’ signing as Arteta is given ‘major funds’ for ‘top priority’

The Arsenal hierarchy is willing to ‘loosen constraints on their wage bill’ and give manager Mikel Arteta ‘major funds’ to sign West Ham’s Declan Rice, according to a report.
The England midfielder has been on the Gunners’ radar for quite some time now with Arteta eager to bolster his midfield.
Writing for CaughtOffside last week, transfer expert Ben Jacobs said Arsenal will probably be ‘more aggressive’ this summer if they miss out on the Premier League title, which is now looking extremely likely.
One potential stumbling block is the price West Ham want for their captain.
They are hoping to receive around £100million and are reportedly resigned to losing him at the end of the season.
Manchester United, Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester City are also believed to be interested in signing Rice.
Despite the high level of interest in the 24-year-old, Arsenal are currently leading the race to land him and will be able to offer Champions League football, which the player craves after playing in the Europa League and Europa Conference League with the Hammers.
There has been a lot of talk about Arsenal’s interest in Rice, but the Daily Mail are now reporting that they are close to making their move.
The report from Sami Mokbel says Mikel Arteta’s side are ‘set to open talks with West Ham’ and could pay £90m to land the England star.
With Champions League football returning to the red half of north London, the Arsenal bosses are willing to ‘loosen their purse strings’ this summer.
This includes giving Arteta ‘major funds’ and ‘loosening constraints on their wage bill’ in order to bring the best players to the Emirates and ensure the club are again challenging for the Premier League title next term.
In order to make this happen, director of sport Edu Gaspar will have to bring in funds by selling several first-team stars.
One player ‘in line to depart’ is vice-captain Granit Xhaka, who is wanted by Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen.
Arteta has made Rice his ‘top priority’ and ‘Arsenal are willing to break their transfer record’ that was set when they signed Nicolas Pepe from Lille for £72m in 2019.
They are ‘reluctant to match West Ham’s £100m valuation’ but are willing to smash their wage structure by offering the player a weekly salary of £300,000, which would match what Bukayo Saka is set to earn when he signs a new contract.
It is said that Arteta acknowledges that his side have ‘lacked strength and power during crucial moments of the season’, which Rice would be able to help sort out.
Leverkusen winger Moussa Diaby and Crystal Palace centre-back Marc Guehi are also on Arteta’s radar, the report states.
The Bundesliga side’s interest in Xhaka could help Arsenal in their pursuit of Diaby after ‘initial contact’ was made over a deal to send the Switzerland captain back to Germany, where he previously played for Borussia Monchengladbach.
Other Arsenal players expected to leave at the end of 2022/23 are Newcastle United target Kieran Tierney and Folarin Balogun.
Meanwhile, Emile Smith Rowe and Rob Holding’s futures are up in the air due to a lack of game time this term.
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