Manchester City have reportedly ended their pursuit of Declan Rice, seemingly handing Arsenal a free run at signing the West Ham United captain.
The Premier League champions are believed to have submitted a £90m bid for the England international on Tuesday, which would have seen them pay £80m as an initial fee, with a further £10m in add-ons, but West Ham were quick to turn down the offer.
Arsenal have also allegedly had two separate offers of £80m plus add-ons and £75m plus £15m in add-ons rejected by the Hammers.
However, Mikel Arteta's side submitted a British-record £105m offer for Rice on Tuesday evening, which would see the capital giants pay a guaranteed £100m plus £5m in add-ons, and the club are believed to be confident of finally coming to an agreement with West Ham.
According to Sky Sports News, the recent developments have now seen Man City officially end their pursuit of the former Chelsea youngster.
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The report claims that the Citizens are not prepared to match the offer from Arsenal, with the English champions not believing that the transfer reflects value for money.
Man City have shown a willingness to walk away from big-money deals in the past, with Harry Maguire, Jorginho and Alexis Sanchez previous examples.
Arsenal are yet to come to a full agreement with West Ham, but it is understood that discussions will continue on Wednesday over the structure of the deal.
The final £105m fee is believed to have been agreed, but the Hammers want the guaranteed fee to arrive quicker rather than having to wait for a number of milestones to occur.
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Rice only has another 12 months left to run on his contract at West Ham, although the club do have the option to activate an additional year to protect his value, should a switch to the Emirates Stadium break down.
The midfielder was again in strong form for the Hammers during the 2022-23 campaign, featuring on 50 occasions in all competitions, scoring five goals and registering four assists in the process.
Rice captained West Ham to success in the Europa Conference League, which has seen the London team qualify for the 2023-24 Europa League.
West Ham have reluctantly agreed to let their captain move on this summer, though, and Arsenal have long been seen as the favourites despite interest from elsewhere.
Manchester United, at one stage, were seemingly in the race for his signature, but the 20-time English champions are currently pursuing other targets, including Chelsea's Mason Mount.
Matt Law
