Arsenal ready to break the club's old tradition for Declan Rice? Here's what we know

Arsenal are set to buy one of the best defensive midfielders in the Premier League after Manchester City backed out of the race to sign Declan Rice. The West Ham captain had a great season with the club, which is willing to sell the player to Arsenal, becoming the biggest transfer in the history of the Premier League.

3 things you need to know

• Declan Rice led West Ham to the UEFA Conference League last season
• Arsenal lacked a strong defensive midfielder last season
• Arsenal failed to win the Premier League in the last 19 years

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Arsenal might have to break their rules for Declan Rice

Arsenal is close to surpassing its transfer record by signing West Ham United's Declan Rice. Despite the fact that all sides have agreed to a £100 million + £5 million add-ons contract, Rice may not be allowed to wear his familiar number 41 shirt when he joins the Gunners. While the paperwork has yet to be finalized, the Hammers captain may have to choose a new number on the back of his Arsenal uniform once the move is finalized.

Arsenal has a history of assigning 'senior numbers' to its first-team players, which is why they normally forbid numbers higher than 36 on the back of their jerseys. This was made clear when Alex Iwobi was playing for Arsenal and had to settle for the number 17 shirt instead of his preferred number 45. Iwobi revealed that he initially preferred the number 45, but Arsenal wanted him to convert to a senior number, which led him to choose 17. He made this statement during a live stream on Instagram in 2020.  It remains uncertain whether Declan Rice will face a similar situation to Iwobi, as the current number 41 shirt belongs to young player Mika Biereth. It will be interesting to see if Rice can retain his familiar number or if he will have to opt for a lower number to comply with the club's regulations.

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Why is ‘41’ Declan Rice's favourite jersey number?

Declan Rice explained why he chose to wear the number 41 for West Ham United on an episode of The Overlap with Gary Neville in 2022. He clarified that while he was a member of the U23s team, Jamo, the academy's kitman, had given him the number. Rice noted that because they are not on the first-team roster, players at the academy often have greater numbers.

Fans are anticipating Rice's Arsenal debut as they take on Nottingham Forest in the team's opening Premier League match. Whichever number he will display on the back of his uniform, though, is still up in the air. The shirt number given to Arsenal's record signing won't have to wait long for fans to learn once the deal is finalised.