Arsenal have submitted their second offer for West Ham captain Declan Rice, according to The Athletic‘s David Ornstein.

The trusted journalist claims the bid includes £75m up front, with another £15m in performance-related add-ons:

🚨 Arsenal have now made a 2nd, improved offer to West Ham for Declan Rice. £75m + £15m add-ons. Club-record proposal for 24yo England midfielder expected to be turned down by #WHUFC – but #AFC getting closer to acceptable fee for top target @TheAthleticFC https://t.co/awJcPUitmf

— David Ornstein (@David_Ornstein) June 20, 2023

As Ornstein says, the Gunners expect West Ham to reject the proposal for Rice as it still falls below the midfielder’s valuation. However, the London club are still confident that a deal can be reached.

Whether the Hammers’ board feel the same way, though, it remains to be seen. They deemed Arsenal’s opening offer as derisory and they are unlikely to be too impressed with this improved bid either.

Arsenal and West Ham are still miles apart on Rice’s fee

The Irons are demanding £120m for their captain if no players are offered up as part of the deal, so to say that the two sides are getting closer to a deal is stretching credulity.

If we disregard the add-ons, which are unlikely to be achievable based on reports about Arsenal’s opening proposal, we are talking about a £45m difference between the two teams.

Will other clubs get involved in the bidding process for Rice?

There were some reports at the end of last week that suggested that Chelsea may make a bid, but those claims seem to have been discredited pretty quickly.

Manchester City are known to have made an enquiry on Friday, but they haven’t stepped up their attempts with a formal approach like Arsenal have. Neither Bayern Munich nor Manchester United seem to be in a position to make an offer at this stage. It’s a story we will keep a close eye on.