Former England goalkeeper David James has questioned why Declan Rice would choose Arsenal over his old side Manchester City this summer.
What did James say about Rice?
The Declan Rice transfer saga has been in full flow for weeks now, with news that Manchester City are ready to enter the race for the midfielder's signature only furthering the discourse.
Arsenal have seen two bids rejected for the 24-year-old already and their attempts to sign Rice have just been made significantly harder as Man City have joined the hunt for the West Ham captain.
The choice will prove to be a difficult one for Rice too, who has a big decision to make ahead of one of the most definitive periods of his career. However, David James sees no difficulty in the decision whatsoever, questioning why the 42-cap England international would choose the Emirates over the Etihad.
"I would rather that he went abroad, not that he's listening, because then he won't be in a team that might want to beat West Ham, and that would be something a lot of West Ham fans wouldn't like," said James.
He continued: "Declan Rice is top drawer and Man City are the best team in Europe, probably going to be the best team in the world in a few months after they win the World Club Championship. If Declan Rice is part of that it's because he deserves to be."
When quizzed on whether he thought Arsenal or Man City would be a better fit, James replied: "Why would he want to play for Arsenal? One team is the European, FA Cup and Premier League champions, the other is neither, or none".
James is likely to haves stoked the social media fire with his words, although they were said behind a broad smirk. Given that James featured a combined 202 times for Manchester City and West Ham, it is unsurprising he feels a move to the Etihad would be more sensible.
Are Man City signing Rice?
Much like the Premier League title race last season, it appears to be Arsenal vs Manchester City in the battle for Rice. Similarly to that title race, it could end with Man City getting their prize in spite of Arsenal leading the race for so long.
While Man City have always kept themselves in the loop in regard to Rice, their interest has accelerated over the past few days, although no official bid has been registered yet.
The midfielder is believed to be open to a move to either club, making his decision based on what Arsenal and City will do in the coming days and weeks to convince him.