Ally McCoist and Laura Woods share £100m Arsenal verdict on West Ham United ace Declan Rice live on talkSPORT
Ally McCoist believes West Ham ace Declan Rice replacing Granit Xhaka at Arsenal would be the “move of the season.”
The Hammers skipper has been linked with a London Stadium exit this summer, with several top clubs potentially battling it out for his signature.
Laura Woods agrees with McCoist that a move to North London for Rice would be an “amazing” transfer for the Gunners.
“I’ve got to be brutally honest, and that wee face of yours is lighting up – if you could swap Granit Xhaka for Declan Rice, never mind ‘I feel a bit this’, or ‘I feel a bit that’, if you’re an Arsenal fan that’s the move of the season,” McCoist said live on talkSPORT.
Woods replied: “I know, I know. I want to keep them both but wow, if Arsenal managed to go and get Declan Rice…
“When people say ‘they bottled it’, or ‘they did this or that’, I’d say that the thing Arsenal did do this season was to make themselves contenders to attract £100million players, that’s what they did.
“What could he be for that Arsenal side next season? He could be amazing if they manage to get hold of him.”
Summer battle incoming
Rice is destined to leave East London this summer, but where he goes exactly remains to be seen.
There are some certainties, however, namely that West Ham will lose one of their most important players, and another club will gain a top-quality defensive midfielder.
And one issue that is almost certain is that the Hammers can sell Rice for a huge fee this summer, with the club able to grind out as big a fee as possible given how a long list of clubs look set to battle it out for his services.
But the powers that be at West Ham won’t want to be distracted too much, as they will need to focus plenty of their time and efforts on finding a suitable replacement.
There will be big shoes to fill at the heart of the Hammers midfield, but there are definitely a handful of players out there who are capable of filling those shoes well.