Arsenal believe Declan Rice is justifying his club-record price tag both on and off the pitch at the moment, according to a report.

Fabrizio Romano reports that Arsenal are internally “more than happy” about Declan Rice since the midfielder signed for the club for £100m plus £5m in bonuses.

The Gunners are pleased with Rice both on and off the pitch, viewing him as a top player and believing that the club-record fee has been well invested.

Romano adds that Rice has settled down at his new club, and Mikel Arteta is also very happy with his summer signing.

None of that should come as any surprise to Arsenal fans, given what we’ve seen on the pitch lately.

Rice has been one of Arsenal’s most consistent performers in his 13 appearances for the club so far, and he’s popped up with key goals in the win over Manchester United and the draw with Chelsea.

The 24-year-old’s assist for Gabriel Jesus against Sevilla wasn’t exactly an eye-catching moment, but he had plenty of those in the remainder of another good display in Spain on Tuesday.

Arsenal have often found that their club-record signings end up coming in for a lot of criticism, with Nicolas Pepe, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Alexandre Lacazette, and Mesut Ozil all holding that title for a time.

Though all four certainly had their moments in north London, none of them were held in the same regard when they left as when they’d arrived.

The early signs suggest Rice might be different, and he might be able to maintain his high valuation over the coming years. But there’s a long way to go yet.