The future of West Ham United captain Declan Rice is likely to dominate headlines as Arsenal and Bayern Munich both continue to be linked with a summer transfer.
Sky Sports Germany transfer guru Florian Plettenberg has reported that Rice and Bayern boss Thomas Tuchel spoke on the phone recently, with the England international said to be "open" to a move to the Allianz Arena. Writing on Twitter, Plettenburg said: "There was a phone call with Tuchel a few days ago!
"Been told it was a good talk. Both appreciate each other. Rice is open to join Bayern & Tuchel. FCB wants to intensify their efforts now. He’s still a transfer target. But: Time is running as he could sign for Arsenal."
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The Mirror then reported on Sunday evening that Bayern are preparing a £95million package to West Ham for their captain, with the player potentially 'tempted' by the proposition of a move to the Bundesliga champions. Arsenal have made Rice their priority target for the summer window, football.london understands as Mikel Arteta looks to bolster his midfield options.
And according to the Guardian, interest from other suitors is likely to be in vein as there is an 'expectation' that the 24-year-old will join the Gunners instead. Arteta's side will be playing in the UEFA Champions League next season, a competition that Rice has consistently admitted he wants to play in sooner rather than later.
“One hundred per cent I want to play in the Champions League,” he said back in November 2022. “For the last two or three years I’ve been saying that.
“I’ve been playing consistently well for my club and I feel like I really want to keep pushing. I see my friends here who are playing Champions League and for big trophies.
“You only get one career and at the end you want to look back at what you’ve won and the biggest games you’ve played in.”
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