"Hasn't had two of his better games" – Pundit believes Arsenal summer signing has been poor amid Gunners' sub-par recent form

Ex-Arsenal midfielder Adrian Clarke has pointed out how Declan Rice has suffered a drop in form in the Gunners' last two Premier League outings against West Ham United and Fulham.

Mikel Arteta's outfit, who are fourth in the 2023-24 league table with 40 points from 20 games, are currently on a sub-par run of form. They have registered one victory in their last six matches across all competitions, losing 2-0 to West Ham and 2-1 to Fulham in the process.

Discussing Arsenal's back-to-back Premier League defeats, Clarke recently shared his two cents during an interaction on the Handbrake Off podcast. He said (h/t The Boot Room):

"It's hard to pin it on one thing. [In 1-1 draw] against Liverpool, I would've had [William] Saliba and Rice as the star players along with Gabriel [Magalhaes], but those three players have certainly been nowhere near the same level across the last two games."

Singling Rice out for his poor performances of late, Clarke continued:

"Declan Rice struggled a bit against West Ham and he wasn't himself. And at Fulham, he lost his man from the corner [for Bobby De Cordova-Reid's winner], he hasn't had two of his better games."

Rice, who joined Arsenal in a potential £105 million move from West Ham last July, has started 26 of his 28 appearances across all competitions for his new team this season. The 24-year-old has bagged three goals and recorded two assists in 2308 minutes of action so far.

Dean Jones asserts Arsenal target Dominic Solanke will not be sold in January window

Speaking on the YouTube channel Chasing Green Arrows, transfer journalist Dean Jones asserted that Arsenal are expected to be rebuffed in their pursuit of Dominic Solanke. He said (h/t The Boot Room):

"He's going to be linked with a transfer this month, there's no doubt he will be linked with a few clubs, but I spoke to someone close to Bournemouth the other day and they said that they absolutely will not sell him. There's absolutely no chance of Solanke moving in this transfer window, they just wouldn't do it, even if someone put £90 million on the table... it would totally mess them up."

Solanke, who has reportedly emerged as one of Arsenal's offensive targets of late, is currently relishing his best-ever Premier League season. The 26-year-old striker is joint-second in the league's Golden Boot race after netting 12 goals in 19 league matches for Bournemouth.

A former Chelsea and Liverpool star, Solanke helped Bournemouth gain promotion to the top-flight after bagging 29 EFL Championship goals in the 2021-22 term. He scored six goals and registered seven assists in 33 Premier League outings for his club in the 2022-23 season.