Arsenal hero Cesc Fabregas feels Mikel Arteta made a ‘fantastic’ decision by signing Declan Rice as he was ‘exactly’ who the Gunners’ XI needed.
The 25-year-old quit West Ham United after a decade in claret-and-blue to secure a move from west to north London last summer.
Rice cost Arsenal a club-record fee to sign after captaining West Ham to win their first major trophy since 1980.
But Fabregas believes the 50-cap England star already proved he was ready for the challenge. Now, Arteta is reaping the rewards from signing their missing piece.
Arteta has used Rice in 43 of Arsenal’s 44 games across all competitions so far this season. He has also seen the London native bag six goals and assist seven times.
Yet Fabregas feels Rice is showing the player he was already at West Ham and who Arsenal were crying out for.For me, he was already a proven player,” Fabregas told the Evening Standard.
“You could see for two, three years that he was ready to jump into a big club.“It’s all about his quality but also his personality.
I knew straight away this was a fantastic signing. This was exactly what Arsenal needed.”
