Mudryk tipped to ‘replicate’ Tottenham legend at Chelsea; Wright picks out ‘great’ alternative for Arsenal

Lewis Oldham
Mudryk backed to replicate Bale

Mykhaylo Mudryk has been praised after he completed his move to Chelsea from Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk for a fee in the region of £88.5m.

The 22-year-old has been one of European football’s major breakout stars this season as his performances in the Champions League have caught the eye.

He grabbed three goals and two assists in the Champions League group stages. His performances in that competition saw his price tag rocket up to over £85m after he was available for around £25m before the 2022/23 campaign.

Arsenal identified him as a main target and they have had a couple of bids rejected for him in recent weeks. They were hoping Shakhtar would lower their demands but Chelsea met their asking price and have since completed the signing.

The Blues have paid over the odds to acquire Mudryk but they will feel that it is necessary amid their ongoing injury troubles.

Stan Collymore is a fan of Chelsea’s new signing and he has backed him to “replicate” Tottenham legend Gareth Bale.

“As for Mudryk’s potential, teams, not just Chelsea, have high expectations for the lad,” Collymore told Caught Offside.

“There are other clubs who believe he is a future Ballon d’Or winner so he’s clearly very, very highly rated.

“I’m not going to predict Mudryk’s future and say he’s going to win the Ballon d’Or, it’s way too early for any of that – but he is a good player. He’s direct, he’s got outrageous pace, very confident, he can weigh in with goals and he can beat defenders before putting in good crosses.”

He added: “I think he’ll get physically bigger and stronger as he develops at Chelsea similar to how Gareth Bale developed at Spurs.

“Both left-wingers, both have that ability to blast past opposition players so if there was a comparison to be made, I think Mudryk could replicate the type of player Bale was.”

Arsenal’s priority this month is to sign a new winger but with Mudryk off the table, it remains to be seen if they will be able to get one in.

They were linked with ex-Leeds United star Raphinha in the summer before he signed for FC Barcelona.

The Brazil international has been in and out of the team this term and Ian Wright thinks he would be a “great” addition for Arsenal.

“There’s talk about Raphinha, that would be great, he’s played in the Premier League,” Wright told Premier League Productions.

“But I think what it doesn’t do is stop what’s happening now. What I’m really pleased about with Arsenal is that not, through the fact they’ve wanted a player that could come into the group and help, gone overboard and tried to get him, which may mess the group up, to bring somebody in for the money he’s on, the amount they’re paying for him.

“It’s going off plan. Don’t go off plan, because at the moment everything is running pretty smoothly, so stay doing what you’re doing.”

The Gunners are likely to be left feeling disappointed again though as Raphinha’s preference is reportedly to remain at Barcelona.

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