Arsenal legend Ray Parlour has heaped praise on West Ham United captain Declan Rice ahead of his imminent transfer to Mikel Arteta's side.
The north London outfit saw bids of £80million and £90million for Rice rejected by the Hammers, who were holding out for a nine-figure fee for their skipper. Eventually, the two sides agreed a fee in principle after the Gunners lodged a £105million bid last week, with Manchester City pulling out of the race to sign the 24-year-old as a result.
A full agreement has since been made and some reports have suggested that the England international will undergo his medical at Arsenal on Friday ahead of his official unveiling. Now, during an exclusive interview with football.london, in partnership with Genting Casino, Parlour has hailed Rice - backing the Gunners' soon-to-be record signing to fit seamlessly into Arteta's system.
"I think it's a great signing", Parlour said when asked about Rice. "He's a quality player, he's only 24 and he doesn't get injured a lot.
"I'm very excited. I know Mark Noble very well and he said he's a great lad for the dressing room as well, which is very important. He plays well on the big occasions too so I think he will fit into that midfield perfectly."
Arteta has also added Kai Havertz to his squad this summer, with the German international joining from Chelsea in a £65million deal. When asked for his thoughts on the Havertz move, Parlour added: "He's gone off the rails a little bit with his career.
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"He's such a good player but I think the situation at Chelsea, with all of their managers changing, left him in the dark a bit. I think Mikel Arteta has seen there's a lot of quality there and now it's up to Mikel to get the best out of him.
"It's a challenge for him (Arteta) but I think he can do it. (Martin) Odegaard is a prime example of that. He was struggling at Real Madrid but now Mikel is getting the best out of him so maybe he can do the same with Havertz.
"He could play the (Granit) Xhaka role in midfield, although he will have to defend a little more than he's used to."
The Gunners have Gabriel Jesus, Eddie Nketiah and Leandro Trossard as centre-forward options but Parlour has admitted that he would also like to see another frontman signed this summer. "I would love to see a striker come in.
"The problem is, how much money have Arsenal got left? They will have spent £200million (once deals for Rice and Jurrien Timber are finalised.)
"They will need to get a few players out probably because of financial fair play. But in an ideal world, you probably want another striker. Eddie Nketiah does a great job but if Gabriel Jesus got injured again...
"We always had four great strikers when I played. We had Thierry Henry, Dennis Bergkamp, Kanu and Sylvain Wiltord. That's the sort of backups you need if you want to compete in all competitions but it all depends on how much money they have left."
Xhaka and Thomas Partey have been crucial to Arsenal in recent seasons, forming the base of the midfield three alongside captain Odegaard. But Xhaka has now left for Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen whilst Partey has been heavily linked with a move away from the Emirates Stadium.
football.london understands that the Ghana international is one of the players that the north Londoners would be open to selling this summer if a suitable offer were to come in. However, Parlour thinks that selling the 30-year-old could be a big risk.
"I would still try to keep Partey if I can. It comes down to what the player wants to do and what his contract situation is but Partey was very good in the first 25 games of last season.
"I think he's been brilliant. First bit of the season he was unbelievable, he was running the show really. But if you've got to balance the books, you have to look at certain personnel."
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