Arsenal’s desperation to sign Rice may mean they have to give in and allow Smith Rowe to leave. Smith Rowe still has three years remaining on his contract in north London, so could attract a sizable fee.
Arteta is keen to keep Smith Rowe, along with many of his squad players, following his side’s qualification for the Champions League. The Spaniard admitted last month he wants more to get more out of those on the fringes.
Arteta said: “First of all, be critical with ourselves, first with myself. My job is to get the best out of 24 players that we have available and I haven’t been able to do that. There are still players who have great potential and we haven’t been able to do that.
“There are different reasons, whether it’s injuries, whether it’s game time, whether I haven’t had the opportunity or we I haven’t been able to play them enough. We have to look for those margins because we have those margins and our job is to make them better.”
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