October 7th 2023.
Pep Guardiola has admitted Manchester City were desperate to sign Declan Rice from West Ham this summer. The England international was the subject of an £80million bid from the Premier League champions, but City were not prepared to enter a bidding war once their opening offer was immediately rejected by the Hammers.
Arsenal then stepped in and smashed their transfer record by agreeing to a £105million fee with their London rivals. Since Rice's arrival, the Gunners have been immediately benefiting from his presence, with the midfielder producing a series of outstanding displays at the heart of their midfield.
Guardiola was asked why City failed to sign one of their key targets in the transfer window, to which he replied: “For sure everybody knows City wanted him, we wanted him. He could play not just when Rodri could not. At the end, Arsenal pushed more and wanted him more, maybe Arteta was more convincing than me, or the club itself, or their offer. We could afford it maybe less, that's why.”
The Spaniard was then pressed about Arsenal's spending power and title chances, to which he answered: “Normally when Manchester City spent this amount of money it's crazy, when it's the other ones how smart they are. I'm not denying that everyone can do whatever they want and never judge the other one. We have been judged all the time but it's fine. When we were in the middle of the table it never happened that, it was not a problem, we were not under scrutiny from the rest.
“At the moment Arsenal's recruitment is really good. They have a young squad for many, many years. The perspective for many is the fact that they will be there many times and, of course, Declan Rice is an exceptional, exceptional holding midfielder with the national team. He is an exceptional player.”
It is clear that Manchester City did not want to enter a bidding war for Rice, and Arsenal's spending power suggests they could be title challengers for a while. Although it is too early to judge, the Gunners have already shown they are not to be taken lightly. Rice's presence is undoubtedly a huge boost for Mikel Arteta's side, and they will be hoping he can help them secure a win against Guardiola’s men on Sunday.
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