West Ham United captain Declan Rice continues to be heavily linked with a transfer to the likes of Arsenal and Bayern Munich recently.
The Gunners have made Rice their priority target ahead of the summer transfer window, football.london understands as Mikel Arteta looks to bolster his midfield options ahead of the 2023/24 campaign. But the Spaniard will face stiff competition for the 24-year-old's signature, with recent reports claiming that Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich are very keen to prise the England international away from the Hammers as well.
Bayern boss Thomas Tuchel is said to have spoken directly to Rice about a potential move to Germany, although if the player's old comments are anything to go by, he doesn't want to stray too far from London. Speaking to Gary Neville on The Overlap Extra last year, the talented midfielder said: "'I'm here [Kingston] all the time.
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"I've always wanted to stay close to this place. I feel like I don't want to lose my roots."
A quick Google search will tell you that his hometown of Kingston-upon-Thames is less than 15 miles away from Arsenal's Emirates Stadium, more than 600 miles closer than Bayern's Allianz Arena. Of course, this doesn't guarantee that Rice would pick north London over Bavaria but it could be a key advantage for Arteta and Co as they look to close the gap between their side and Premier League champions Manchester City.
The Times reported on Wednesday that despite interest from the Bundesliga giants, Rice is 'still believed' to favour a move to the Gunners, who are set to lose midfielder Granit Xhaka to another German side in the form of Bayer Leverkusen. football.london reported last month that Xhaka was in advanced talks to sign for Leverkusen.
The Swiss international is set to sign for a €15million (£13million) deal, penning a contract until 2027.
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