After Declan Rice, Arsenal could hurt West Ham again as Mikel Arteta closes in on signing £76m star in January window. Arsenal signed Declan Rice from West Ham United in the summer of 2023.
At the time, it seemed like West Ham did well out of the deal, with Arsenal paying a £105 million fee for the now 25-year-old.
However, West Ham have failed to adequately replace Declan Rice in the middle of the park, and we have desperately lacked his power, pace and ball-carrying ability since he left the London Stadium.
Rice has gone from strength to strength at The Emirates, and he’s now competing for major honours every season.
Meanwhile, the Hammers are now stuck with one of the slowest midfields in the Premier League, if not the slowest. Whilst we definitely have to address that issue, the signing of a centre-forward may well be our main priority this month.
However, it seems like Arsenal could be set to make our task an almost impossible one.
Arsenal eye West Ham target Randal Kolo Muani in January window
According to a report from Tuttosport, Arsenal are leading the race to sign Randal Kolo Muani in the January window. That’s a major blow for West Ham, with Lopetegui said to be keen to bring the France international to the London Stadium.
Now it seems like the Gunners are in the box seat to obtain his signature though.
And if they win the race to sign him, it will be the second time in 18 months that they’ve really hurt us, after the signing of Declan Rice in the summer of 2023.
Kolo Muani joined Paris Saint-Germain from Eintracht Frankfurt in the summer of 2023 for a whopping £76 million (BBC).
However, he has failed to justify that price tag, with just 11 goals and seven assists in 54 appearances.
That’s not to say that he isn’t an elite player, because he certainly is. Things just haven’t worked out for him with SG.
He has been described as explosive by the Bundesliga’s official website and they’re bang on the money, what with his raw pace, power and incredible movement.
Randal Kolo Muani certainly has the physical attributes required to succeed in the Premier League, but unfortunately for West Ham, it seems like Arsenal are in pole position to sign him in the January window.
