Arsenal could accept a £55m bid for new Declan Rice

Arsenal are probably in the strongest position heading into the transfer window. Even after their recent missteps, the Gunners remain heirs to the Premier League title and will be aiming to add another jewel to their crown this summer.

Andrea Berta has already made an impression in his first summer in charge and will be hoping to repeat himself in the coming months. This time around, it could be all about building a team capable of a dominant era rather than a one-off success in the Premier League.

Arsenal are so close to finishing that they won’t want to go down the mountain too soon, and the best way to avoid that is further reinforcements.

Arsenal aim to sign new Declan Rice

Winning a league title is difficult in itself, but defending that title after one season is an entirely different challenge. Ask Liverpool and they will quickly tell you how quickly things can change.

The Anfield outfit offers a blueprint for what to avoid if Arsenal are to achieve glory this season. Don’t completely change your style, sell your big stars, or change any part of your title-winning team just yet.

Instead, it’s all about refinement. Mikel Arteta still has many weaknesses to strengthen at the Emirates. There are still question marks over his team’s ability in open play, for example, and it is becoming clear that more midfield depth will need to be welcomed this summer.

Declan Rice and Martin Zvimendi have enjoyed success as a duo, but each time Arsenal have been forced to make a change, especially with the latter struggling to manage English football’s schedule, the downturn has been marked beyond them.

As a result, the Gunners have turned their attention to West Ham United’s Matheus Fernandes as they look to move up the midfield pecking order.

According to a report by Caught Offside, Liverpool have been in talks with the player’s agent in recent weeks to consider a move for the Portuguese.

The Merseysiders are not the only club interested, with Fernandes reportedly receiving “admiring looks” from Arsenal and Manchester City.

The paper notes that a bid of £55m is likely to be accepted if Fernandes were to leave West Ham.

Why Fernandes could become the new Rice

It wasn’t that long ago that Arsenal lured Rice north of the capital, welcoming him to a game-changing signing from West Ham.

That £105m figure will look even more of a bargain by this week as rumors of a shock Ballon d’Or win are starting to emerge and the Gunners will have no choice but to return to the London Stadium to sign their new star.

This time, it’s Fernandes who steals the headlines. The midfielder has been in excellent form in recent months, even as the Hammers head towards relegation. He will have played the most important role if Nuno Espirito Santo’s team can avoid dropping him.

At £55 million, it could soon look like a bargain deal if the former Southampton man follows in Rice’s footsteps. The 21-year-old is likely to get even better over the next few years.

Once he gets going, Arteta will have complete control of his midfield. At this stage of the season, the ability to turn to a player like Fernandes rather than the lethargic Zvimendi could be enough to get the Gunners over the line. That might have been enough to keep their Treble dreams alive.

It’s easy to see why Fernandes is attracting Arsenal’s attention. He’s just the perfect midfielder. On a team that struggles with possession, he completes nearly 40 passes per game and outperforms Rice in certain off-the-ball metrics.

As a pair, they will flourish as duel winners and elite ball carriers. The West Ham man has been a duel-winning monster all season and Fernandes became the key man at the London Stadium in the absence of Zvimendi at the most crucial times.

The figures suggest he could comfortably step up to this summer’s champions selection if Arsenal look to sign a new star midfielder three years after signing Rice, creating a new problem for West Ham.