Sport finance expert Dan Plumley has claimed that West Ham are receiving a “bonus” from Arsenal every time they qualify for the Champions League.

The Gunners paid an initial £100m for Declan Rice in 2023 and Plumley told West Ham Zone that the £5m in add-ons is based on Mikel Arteta’s side finishing in the top 4/5 across the course of the midfielder’s 5-year contract:

“West Ham would have expected Arsenal to qualify for the Champions League more often than not and that would have been the five seasons at £1million each, that’s a significant amount of money that you can bank as a bonus, but you’ve also got to be careful not to overplay that and turn the deal the other way, and it can work that way if you demand too much.”

“I think they will be relatively happy with where they are at, and ultimately, if you make that deal, you’re happy with it and you move on, so any kind of missed opportunities may be in the back of some minds, but the club will have put that to bed a long time ago.”

Moyes wanted £50m more for Rice

Former West Ham manager David Moyes famously slapped a £150m asking price on his club captain prior to his sale to Arsenal and, more recently, he jokingly said that Gunners supporters owe him another £50m for the player’s performances.

While some now feel that the Irons undervalued their best player, you do have to look at things with some level of context.

Rice had already decided that he wanted to move to the Emirates. Manchester City were also keen but, once they realised that the player wasn’t interested in joining them, they bowed out of the race. If the midfielder had been more flexible on his potential destination, a bidding war could have ensued.

West Ham did not spend the proceeds wisely

The Hammers did finish 9th last season but their performances in the second half of the campaign were poor, leading to Moyes’ departure. The club are currently sitting 17th this time around.

It does suggest that the £100m+ received from Rice’s sale hasn’t been invested well. Decision-making on transfers has to improve if the club are to turn their fortunes around.

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