Arsenal look to have finally got their man with their pursuit of West Ham United captain Declan Rice thought to be nearing its end.
The Gunners sent the Hammers three official bids, the most recent of which came on Tuesday night and was thought to be worth £100million plus a further £5m in add-ons. While the amount is considered enough for West Ham to green light his departure, they do still harbour some concerns over the structure of the bid.
Reigning champions Manchester City were also well in the race for Rice, which sparked concern from Arsenal's perspective. This is because Pep Guardiola's men didn't even need to better the Gunners offer in terms of amount, but rather better the structure.
Arsenal's financial situation means they are hoping to pay the fee over a set of instalments which could be divided by four years, whereas City could offer as much as £80m within two payments. However, the size of the fee has become too much in the eyes of Guardiola.
With the Gunners now in pole position to land Rice and an agreement expected to be reached between the two sides, morale is high in the red half of north London. However, the Gunners are still the subject of ridicule and taunting from rival supporters online who are poking fun at their method of purchase.
Many fans are all making the same joke by suggesting Arsenal use Klarna to land their biggest targets. The Gunners used instalments to land current club-record signing Nicolas Pepe for £72m back in 2019.
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Klarna is a Swedish-based financial company that allows customers to stagger payments and spread them out over an extended period of time, rather than have to fork out the entire sum all at once.
One Twitter user wrote: "Arsenal out here trying to buy Declan Rice using Klarna." Another added: "Arsenal should get Klarna as new sponsor."
Another fan jokingly penned a chant in reference to Arsenal's bid, which read: "Arsenal pay with Klarna everywhere they go, Arsenal pay with Klarna everywhere they gooooo."
One suggested that Gunners sporting director Edu would be under serious scrutiny if the club had missed out on Rice due to the nature of their offer, writing: "Arsenal have bid £105m for Rice but the club aren't happy with the structure of payments.
"Klarna FC at it again it seems paving the way for City to swoop in. Honestly, if Rice actually ends up at City then Edu's head will roll for this."
It looks as if Edu's job is certainly safe for now, with Rice expected to be just one of a number of high-profile additions made by Arsenal this summer.
Kai Havertz is also on the verge of being announced, while Jurrien Timber has been touted with a move to the Emirates. There's every chance instalments are used to purchase both, but with next season's title the aim, Arteta will just want talent through the door, regardless of how the cost is covered.
