Declan Rice's shirt number available as Arsenal ahead of his £100m transfer to Emirates

Declan Rice's ideal jersey number is available as Arsenal makes a £100 million transfer record.

In order to prepare for the next season, Mikel Arteta is reportedly focusing on acquiring two new midfielders, with the 24-year-old being one of those targets.

Declan Rice played his last match for the Hammers after chairman David Sullivan said that the east London club would be selling their star midfielder. 

Rumor has it that the English international is interested in being signed by Manchester United, Liverpool, Chelsea, and Bayern Munich, but Arsenal seems poised to outbid their competitors for his services.

It has been heard that Rice, who spent six years at the London Stadium, would leave the Hammers by making club history by winning the Europa Conference League in his last match. 

The England international advanced through the ranks to become a key member of the West Ham squad. Despite his significance to the team, he chose to wear shirt number 41, which has since become synonymous with the team.

Given that Maruo Bandeira, a promising Under-23 player, now wears No. 41 for the club, he will probably get the same number if he requests it, according to sources at Arsenal. Rice has only ever worn the No. 41 throughout his senior club career, and he may continue to do so at Arsenal in the next year.