West Ham are demanding that Arsenal pay Declan Rice’s fee in full over one to two years, according to Hammers insider ExWHUEmployee.

The Gunners want to pay the £100m over a three to four year period but Ex says Mikel Arteta’s side will need to reduce the number of instalments:

“We believe the ball is firmly in Arsenal’s court now. With Arsenal’s latest offer and the preference of Rice to go to North London. As stated numerous times by us as well the problem is over instalments as we reported yesterday. West Ham want it over a shorter term (1-2 years) and Arsenal over a longer term (3-4 years) this is where the negotiating will have to happen.”

With Manchester City having withdrawn from the race to sign Rice, fans rightly believe that Arsenal have won the race for Rice, but these fine details are important.

While there is no doubt that West Ham are happy with the £100m (plus £5m in add-ons) offer that the Gunners have put on the table, getting an agreement over the payment structure is still required.

The reason why this is pivotal for both teams is due to Financial Fair Play. While Arsenal want to stretch payments over the longest period of time possible, to give them extra room to buy other players, West Ham need the money now so they can purchase a replacement for Rice this summer.

Securing the services of Rice will be a massive coup for Arsenal

Smashing the club’s transfer record was always expected, but the fact that the Gunners have managed to blow City out of the water with the third bid for Rice was a stunning development.

It was feared that the Premier League champions could outbid Arsenal, considering their financial muscle, but the fact that they stepped away from the deal shows that Arsenal can compete with the best.

Arteta has played a key role

You do feel that City would have stayed in the race for much longer if they had the blessing of the player, but it’s clear that Gunners boss Mikel Arteta has worked extremely hard to convince Rice that a move to the Emirates is the right one for him.

It does seem like a lot of the groundwork was already put in to get the midfielder‘s approval even before the first official offer was lodged and those efforts have now been rewarded.