West Ham United youngster Declan Rice is reportedly drawing attention from Arsenal.
The Sun are reporting that Arsenal are considering a January move for West Ham’s teenage centre-back Declan Rice, in a bid to inject some youth into their ageing back-line.
The 17-year-old is highly regarded in East London, and came to prominence after impressing during the Hammers’ pre-season tour of Austria in the summer.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger
And, according to the Sun, it has been Rice’s superb performances for West Ham’s academy side that has caught Gunners boss Arsene Wenger’s attention.
With both Per Mertesacker and Laurent Koscielny both into there 30’s, it is no surprise that central defence is an area where Arsenal will be looking to strengthen over the next year or so.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger
The report suggests that the Gunners will not have things all their own way in their pursuit of West Ham’s under-23 captain, with the Hammers set to resist any potential approach for one of their most valuable young commodities.
The Republic of Ireland under-17 international still has three years remaining on his current deal at West Ham, so the East London outfit will certainly be in no rush to sell the promising teenager.
West Ham United manager Slaven Bilic
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