Arsenal legend Ian Wright has joked that he ‘feels guilty’ after the Gunners ‘robbed’ West Ham United when signing Declan Rice despite his transfer being a club record.
The Emirates Stadium natives broke the bank to prise Rice away from east London in the last summer transfer market. Mikel Arteta had marked the 24-year-old as a leading target for his plans at Arsenal. But West Ham were loath to sell their first title-winning captain since 1980.
Rice’s final act in claret-and-blue was to lift their first major title in 43 years with the Europa Conference League. He had become West Ham’s full-time captain at the start of that season after Mark Noble retired. Yet the 48-cap England star effectively took their armband in 2020.
Rice is one of the first names on Arteta’s Arsenal teamsheet
Stan Kroenke, Arsenal’s owner, green-lit a deal worth an initial £100m rising £5m in add-ons for Arteta to sign Rice. The Irons product left London Stadium after 245 first-team games for 15 goals plus 13 assists. He has since proven to be an integral piece for the Gunners’ line-up.
Rice has featured in 19 of the Gunners’ 20 fixtures since joining Arsenal in a club-record deal in July. He only missed the north Londoners’ Carabao Cup third-round tie at Brentford due to a back injury in September. The midfielder has also scored twice and has two assists so far.
Wright jokes that Arsenal ‘robbed’ West Ham for his transfer
Rice has only scored important goals for Arsenal, as well. He produced their go-ahead effort in stoppage time to beat Manchester United 3-1 in September. The one-time Ireland talent also took advantage of Robert Sanchez’s error at Chelsea as Arsenal came back to draw 2-2.
He slotted straight into Arteta’s line-up and immediately established himself as a leader, too. Wright even sees Rice as a captain for Arsenal given ‘the way he’s playing’. The London-born anchor has astounded the Gunners legend with his consistency and ability to affect a match.
“I’m not being biased or anything,” Wright stated on his Wrighty’s House podcast. “But I was speaking to a couple of West Ham fans recently, and I wind them up all the time. I said, ‘Do you know something? I feel like we robbed you, I feel like we should give you an extra £20m.
“I’m going to give you an extra £20m because it’s making me feel guilty that we’ve only got him for £100m!’”
Wright further added: “I cannot remember him having a bad game. Every single game he’s doing something of note. He’s affecting the game. I think, without a doubt, he’s the major difference for us this season.”
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