Manchester City have tested Arsenal with a £90m bid for West Ham captain Declan Rice.
Pep Guardiola has been keen on Rice for some time but the club only formalised their interest on Monday evening following two rejected bids from Arsenal. While that bid is understood to have been rejected after falling short of the £100m valuation that West Ham have placed on their star midfielder, it steps up City's threat to Arsenal hopes of landing the player.
Arsenal have been trying to sign Rice but have seen two bids knocked back after they also failed to meet West Ham's asking price. Attention will turn back to North London to see if they will make a third bid that is expected from them, and to Manchester to see if the Blues want to increase their offer.
West Ham can feel more confident that their valuation will be met now that Premier League champions City have joined runners-up Arsenal in the race to sign the England international. Rice would be seen by City as more of a replacement for the outgoing Ilkay Gundogan than Mateo Kovacic, the Chelsea midfielder who is due to complete his move to the Etihad this week.
Also read: Barcelona swooped when Ilkay Gundogan defied Man City expectations
City are still waiting to see if Bernardo Silva will be part of their midfield for next season. The Blues are again willing to listen to offers for a player who wants a new challenge, but none have been forthcoming so far in the window despite interest from Paris Saint-Germain, Barcelona and Saudi Arabia.
