Arsenal were left ‘aggravated’ after Chelsea hijacked their deal for Shakhtar Donetsk winger Mykhaylo Mudryk at the last minute, according to reports.
The Gunners have been trying to sign Mudryk for weeks with most reports indicating that Arsenal were in the driving seat over a potential big-money move.
However, the news broke last night that Chelsea have agreed a €100m fee for the Ukraine international with Mudryk completing his medical today ahead of an announcement.
Chelsea were willing to pay Shakhtar’s €100m asking price, something Arsenal weren’t prepared to do, while The Independent claims the Blues also told Mudryk they could double the salary that the Gunners were offering him.
On the deal for Mudryk, The Independent said:
‘Arsenal did not meet Shakhtar’s asking price and the Premier League leaders made it clear that they would not get into a bidding war with Chelsea.
‘However, The Independent has been told of an aggravation at the club – which reflects a feeling within the Premier League – that the Stamford Bridge hierarchy “are getting involved in everything”.’
And transfer expert Fabrizio Romano has added more details on how Chelsea beat Arsenal to the signing of Mudryk too, he said in his Caught Offside column: “Arsenal have missed out on Mykhaylo Mudryk – so, what went wrong?
“The player’s priority was Arsenal. Arsenal made a third bid on Thursday, but Chelsea’s bid on Saturday for big money and big wages for the player and this strong approach has seen them win the race.
“Arsenal could not guarantee €100m for Mudryk, but this was always Shakhtar’s position. Shakhtar made it clear to Mudryk that this was their position, and so they told him that if he doesn’t accept the move to Chelsea he will not be able to move.
“I think Arsenal have a very clear strategy. I’m told they don’t want to overpay or enter into crazy bidding wars. It was like that for Dusan Vlahovic, Raphinha, Lisandro Martinez… they did their best to sign Mudryk, a great bid; Chelsea decided to go really strong on it so Arsenal to respect their strategy and vision have decided to not change anything.
“I think if they’re first in Premier League and changed their situation in just one year, it’s also thanks to clear ideas and vision. Of course they lost a big target and a top player but they don’t panic. I don’t want to speculate on targets right now, but for sure they will explore the market and then I’ll let you know.”
