Declan Rice has been linked with Arsenal for some time now. The England international has seemingly outgrown West Ham and a summer move looks to be on the cards.
Arsenal and Chelsea have been the two main teams linked this year, but after the Blues spent over £600m in the previous two transfer windows, they may not be able to bend the books any further to allow such a huge signing.
Fees between £100m-120m have been floated for Rice, but now, Caught Offside report that Rice’s price tag could also come down if Arsenal include one or more of Reiss Nelson, Folarin Balogun and Albert Sambi Lokonga as part of the deal.
Giving up Lokonga and Reiss Nelson as part of a deal for Rice does make sense as neither player is that important to Arsenal’s squad moving forward, with the former currently out on loan with Crystal Palace.
However, it is clear that Arsenal need some fresh legs up front and they may be better served keeping hold of Balogun.
The 21-year-old had a tough stint with Middlesbrough last season, but he has now scored 19 Ligue 1 goals in 34 outings whilst on loan with Stade Reims this season.
