Darren Bent believes that one Arsenal player would go for £120 million if the Gunners decided to cash in on him tomorrow after his outstanding season for Mikel Arteta’s side.
Mikel Arteta appears to be on the verge of building a side which will win the Premier League, while also competing with the heavyweights in the Champions League.
Nearly every player appears to have improved under Arteta, and the signings Arsenal have made have often proved to be inspired, with the likes of David Raya and Kai Havertz proving a lot of doubters wrong over the course of this past campaign.
But the player who appears to have the potential to be a transformative signing is Declan Rice, with Arsenal smashing their club-record to sign the England international from West Ham.
Darren Bent thinks Arsenal star would go for £120 million right now
The Gunners agreed a deal worth up to £105 million for Rice, and may not have expected the 25-year-old to repay that fee so quickly. However, Rice has been ‘fantastic’ throughout the season.
Speaking on talkSPORT, Darren Bent opted for Rice in his Premier League team of the season consisting of just one player per club, before being asked what Arsenal could get if they cashed in on him now.
“Holding midfield, Declan Rice. You’d want Rodri, but [I’ve got another Manchester City player], so I’ve gone Declan Rice,” Bent said.
“One of them, yeah, Saliba would be in the conversation, played every minute of every game,” he replied when asked if the midfielder had been Arsenal’s player of the season.
“£120 million probably,” he added, when asked what Rice would go for if sold tomorrow.
How Declan Rice managed to shock Gabriel Magalhaes
In truth, many Arsenal fans may argue that they would want even more for Rice if the club were mad enough to try and cash in on him.
He has proved to be so important to the balance of the side, even proving to surprise some of the players around him.
Gabriel Magalhaes has spoken about being shocked by how quickly Rice has settled in at Arsenal, and you would understand if Arteta felt a similar way.
It can be a huge burden for players to arrive for a club record fee, particularly after that club had come so close to winning the Premier League title the previous year.
But Rice has relished that responsibility. And he will now be one of the key men looking to drag Arsenal across the line next season.