Several days after agreeing a £105m fee with West Ham United for the signing of Declan Rice, Arsenal have apparently cleared the final hurdle as they prepare to welcome the England international to North London for the 2023-24 season......READ THE FULL ARTICLE>>>
The Hammers dug their heels in over their preferred payment structure, leading to a slight delay in proceedings, but the two clubs are now said to have belatedly reached an accord.
Rice’s move to the Emirates will see him become not just Arsenal’s all-time record signing, but Great Britain’s too, surpassing the £100m Jack Grealish cost Manchester City in 2021.
The former Chelsea product is now expected to undergo a medical before putting pen to paper on a five-year contract at the Emirates, where he will finally fulfil his Champions League ambitions.
Here, Sports Mole takes a look at which shirt numbers are available to Rice in North London.
West Ham United’s Declan Rice celebrates scoring their third goal on April 20, 2023© Reuters
A rather unconventional choice, Rice has donned the number 41 shirt for West Ham ever since making his senior breakthrough at the London Stadium, while he briefly took on the same jersey during the 2016-17 season at youth level.
Rice would not be the first new Arsenal signing to feel a particular attachment to a specific number, as Kai Havertz will continue in the 29 jersey – a bond which started during the German’s days of playing the FIFA and Pro Evolution Soccer video game series with his brother.
In contrast, Rice was simply handed the 41 jersey during his inaugural pre-season trip with the first team, and the England international revealed on The Overlap that due to his superstitious nature, he may very well continue with that number emblazoned on his back for the rest of his career.
Last season, Portugal midfield starlet Mauro Bandeira was bestowed with the ’41’ at Arsenal, but the 19-year-old is still waiting for his first-team debut and would surely only be too happy to relinquish that number to Rice, in the hope of potentially following in his footsteps one day.
Leicester City’s James Maddison in action with West Ham United’s Declan Rice on May 28, 2023© Reuters
Unsurprisingly, no revered names have ever sported the ’41’ on their backs for Arsenal, with forgotten former youth products Jay Emmanuel-Thomas and Gavin Hoyte among them, but Josh Dasilva – another occupier of the jersey during his time in North London – has since found a Premier League home in Brentford.
However, should Rice not continue his love affair with the ’41’ for whatever reason, the England international could become Arsenal’s new number five if its current holder – Thomas Partey – seeks pastures new before the new season begins.
The 24-year-old’s options are otherwise limited, as the number four that he sports for England is currently in Ben White’s possession, while centre-back Gabriel Magalhaes has a firm grip on the number six shirt.
There is every chance that Gabriel may also take on the traditional centre-back’s ‘5’ if Partey exits, potentially leaving the number six vacant, but all the signs ostensibly point towards Rice becoming just the 11th player to enter the field as Arsenal’s number 41...READFULL
