Arsenal player who called Arteta a ‘baby coach’ last season could be sold to West Ham once Rice deal is completed
West Ham want to sign Arsenal defender Nuno Tavares once a deal to sell Declan Rice has been finalised, according to a new report.
The two Premier League clubs agreed a deal in principle for the 24-year-old Hammers captain, with only minor details needing to be discussed.
The Daily Mail reported that Arsenal will pay an initial £100 million for Rice, with £5 million in potential add-ons. The Gunners are said to want to pay that sum over four years, with West Ham wanting it paid in full by 2025.
Rice is set to become Arsenal’s second summer signing, after they confirmed the transfer of Kai Havertz from Chelsea on Wednesday evening.
When he does depart the London Stadium, West Ham will have a significant amount of money to spend on transfers – and they have reportedly identified a target currently signed to Arsenal.
West Ham ‘want to sign Nuno Tavares’
According to the i newspaper, the Hammers are keen to seal a cut-price deal to sign Nuno Tavares for just £8 million this summer.
The attacking left-back has spent the 2022/23 season on loan at Ligue 1 side Marseille, where he struggled for form after a positive start to the campaign.l
French outlet L’Equipe alleged in February that Arsenal agreed to loan him out because manager Mikel Arteta and his staff were ‘often annoyed with his behaviour’.
And RMC Sport journalist Florent Germain (via Foot-Sur7) claimed that Marseille had no intention of signing Tavares permanently after his loan spell, due to his lack of consistency and attitude.
Although his defensive attributes were often questioned in France, however, he scored six goals in 31 Ligue 1 appearances from left-back as Marseille qualified for the Champions League.
And at the age of 23, Tavares still has time to improve both sides of his game and provide competition for Aaron Cresswell and Emerson Palmieri at West Ham.
The move would also clear a wage off Arsenal’s books, and provide them with a small transfer budget boost, as they look to continue to improve their squad this summer.
