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Erik ten Hag has hinted he wishes Manchester United had signed Declan Rice instead of Arsenal last summer.
The England midfielder has been one of Mikel Arteta’s most important players this season, featuring in all 36 of Arsenal’s Premier League games.
On Thursday, Rice – who joined Arsenal in a £100m move from West Ham last summer – was shortlisted for the Premier League player of the year award.
Arsenal faced competition from title rivals Manchester City in the battle to sign Rice and Ten Hag has suggested he wished his own club were also involved in the transfer tussle.
Manchester United spent over £150m on new signings last summer – bringing Andre Onana, Mason Mount and Rasmus Hojlund to Old Trafford – but were not one of the top contenders to sign Rice despite holding long-term interest in the midfielder.
Asked about Rice as a player and whether he would have liked him in his United squad, Ten Hag said: ‘He’s a very good player. He would absolutely have fitted here.’
United are seven places and 29 points behind Arsenal as the two Premier League giants prepare to meet at Old Trafford this weekend.
Assessing Arsenal, who are challenging for their first title in 20 years, Ten Hag added: ‘We go in every game to win, not prepare for the next game.
‘Of course it’s in the back of my mind [FA Cup final] but I want to put out a team that is eager to win and we choose the best team for Sunday to win that game.
‘I don’t take big risks with players now to win on Sunday, with the risk they drop out again but it’s not such a different situation if you have a cup final.
‘Arsenal are one of the best teams or probably the best team, is it City or Arsenal? Very ball secure, very good structures. We know we have to play at our maximum levels to get a result but we are capable of it.’
Gunners boss Mikel Arteta, meanwhile, has urged his players to ‘perform at a high level’ as they look to improve their dismal record at Old Trafford.
‘Every game has a different context,’ Arteta said. ‘We know our history [at Old Trafford] how we have done over there, so we are going to have to be at our best to win the game.
‘We know what we need to do, but first we have to perform at a high level to deserve to win the match. That is where the focus is.’
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