West Ham included secret clause into Declan Rice deal with Arsenal that could help them sign England teammate
West Ham inserted a fascinating clause into Declan Rice’s contract at Arsenal which gives the club first refusal on his England teammate.
Rice moved to Arsenal in July for a then-British record transfer cost of £105 million, and he adapted to life in north London with ease.
West Ham was a difficult partner for the Gunners to negotiate with because David Moyes wanted to collect the most money possible for their prized player.
While Rice’s contract with the Hammers at the Emirates contained an intriguing condition, it states that should Smith Rowe decide to quit the team the following year, the Hammers will have first dibs on signing him.
Football Transfers asserts that Moyes chose Smith Rowe over Mohamed Kudus before the Ghanaian joined, and they are right.
Smith Rowe has recovered from a long-term knee injury, but so far this season, Mikel Arteta has not had him start a game.
The Englishman’s current contract with Arsenal expires in 2026, and it’s unclear whether Arsenal would approve a sale or would prefer to send the player on loan.
Several Premier League teams, notably Aston Villa and Chelsea, were said to be interested in signing the midfielder over the summer.
While a January transfer to Newcastle has been suggested. Fabrizio Romano, a transfer analyst, recently updated information on the Magpies’ interest.
“This [Smith Rowe] is a name that keeps coming up, but again I’m not aware of any concrete talk at this stage with Newcastle, let’s see closer to the January window,” Romano told Caught Offside on Tuesday.
As I’ve always said, Newcastle are not pushing forward with any signings right now because it’s important for them to know if they will be in the UCL in the second half of the season before making a move.
Arteta suggested that Smith Rowe still had a promising future at the club in remarks made back in April.
“He’s pushing, and in football what you did a year ago, a month ago is not important, it’s about what you do now, what you do yesterday and what you do tomorrow,” Arteta stated.
“The player must have that attitude, and their contribution to the team must improve us and help us win games. He’s quite near.
