Why Arsenal are now in talks to sign their new Declan Rice for big-money

Is there a better midfielder in world football than Arsenal‘s Declan Rice right now? Perhaps you could look at Vitinha or potentially Pedri as two options.

Regardless of that, Rice is very much in the conversation. When he first signed for the Gunners he was regarded as one of the finest in the Premier League but he is now firmly regarded as one of the most elite on the planet. Deservedly so too.

The £105m man has put in some mega performances since moving to the Emirates Stadium. Who can forget those two free-kicks against Real Madrid? That season may not have culminated in a trophy but Rice was huge once again in 2025/26. He was a key reason for their first title win in 22 years.

Now, the goal will be to sign more Rice’s. They need to build on the success they achieved last season and build a dynasty under Mikel Arteta.

Thankfully, Josh Kroenke and Co are all aligned on ambition.

Arsenal ready to sign their new Declan Rice

One of the primary objectives for Andrea Berta and his minions to complete this summer is to bring a new midfielder to Arsenal.

They signed Martin Zubimendi in a £55m deal a year ago but Arteta is not satifsfied with his options. He wants more depth and importantly, he wants more quality.

Lille wonderkid and Morocco sensation Ayyoub Bouaddi continues to be linked, as does Bournemouth’s Alex Scott. Aged 19 and 22 respetively, they would be signings not only for the future but also for now. They are two of the most exciting young midfielders around.

However, there is a sense that Arsenal want a marquee signing. They want to make a statement to the rest of the division that they are here to go back to back.

Sandro Tonali has been discussed, as has his teammate at Newcastle in the form of Bruno Guimaraes. News emerged towards the end of last week revealing that Arsenal had already made an approach to sign the player via his representatives.

Well, the latest is that the Gunners are now set to open club-to-club talks with the Toon.

That’s according to reporter Ben Jacobs who, speaking on behalf of talkSPORT said: “They are considering making a new offer and for the first time it would be a written formal offer direct to Newcastle United after an initial bid of £55m via intermediaries was turned away.”

Why Bruno Guimaraes could be Arsenal’s new Declan Rice

A “big moment” in the project. That was how the aforementioned Kroenke described the club-record signing of Rice when speaking to Gary Neville after Arsenal had won the title.

Indeed it was. It was perhaps the biggest moment alongside hiring Arteta, the genius behind their first league crown in over two decades.

At the time, Rice had just won the Conference League with West Ham and was widely expected to leave. Arsenal had done a lot of groundwork on the player side but there was still an expectation that once Manchester City came calling, Arteta and Co were not going to have a prayer of landing him.

Yet, the England international knows football history. The chance to win the league with something of a sleeping giant was an attractive proposition. Rice ended up in north London instead and will no doubt be delighted with his decision.

Yet, three years on, Arsenal need another of those big moments in the transfer market that the owners have referred to.

While the likes of Julian Alvarez and Morgan Rogers continue to be touted with switches and would be huge transfers, a deal to sign Guimaraes from Newcastle would be too.

After all, like when Rice moved from the London Stadium, the Brazilian is “one of the best midfielders in the Premier League” in the words of Arsenal podcaster Rory Cook.

It is hard to dispute that claim. While he may not have the power and ball-carrying qualities of Rice, at the end of the day, they are both incredible duel winners and warriors on the pitch. They are both remarkable leaders too. They order teammates around but also let their football do the talking.

Two of the most aggressive players in the Premier League, Guimaraes ranked as highly as the top 6% of midfielders in Europe’s top five leagues last season for defensive ground duels won with 2.82 per 90. Rice, by comparison, won just 1.49 but they were pretty equal for tackles and interceptions. The latter made 2.74 per 90 while the Newcastle skipper made 2.44.

While Bruno’s main role at Newcastle is to shuttle around in midfield, much like Rice, he’s also mightily effective in forward areas. In fact, like the Arsenal superstar, he’s a fine set-piece taker too. He even scored directly from a corner in 2025/26.

Last term, the expected assists per 90 of Rice’s set-pieces was 0.09, a statistic that ranked him among the top 3% of positionally similar players in Europe. Guimaraes ranked in the best 12% with 0.05 expected assists from set-plays.

A midfielder who is seemingly everywhere, the idea of these two in the middle of the park for Arsenal is a special one.