Arsenal are reportedly working on a bid potentially worth over £50million for Shakhtar Donetsk sensation Mykhailo Mudryk.
The Gunners have been heavily linked with the 21-year-old winger – who has drawn comparisons to Neymar – since the summer; Shakhtar sporting director Carolo Nicolini recently confirmed (opens in a new tab) that the north London club had been “interested” in Mudryk, alongside Manchester City.
And according to the Italian journalist Nicolas Schira (opens in a new tab)Arsenal are now offering an offer of around €50-60m (£43-52m) for the Ukraine international.
Schira reported (opens in a new tab) in August that the Gunners had agreed a four-year deal with Mudryk, only for Shakhtar to reject their approach.
But the Premier League leaders don’t appear to have been deterred from pursuing the tricky striker – despite talking this week that they can set their sights elsewhere (opens in a new tab).
Mudryk started every game of Shakhtar’s Champions League campaign, scoring three goals and setting up two more as the Ukrainian champions finished third in their group.
He could still adopt the style against some of Europe’s top sides later this season, with Shakhtar qualifying for the Europa League play-off round.
Likewise, Mudryk – who has won eight caps for Ukraine – could find himself playing in the Europa League for Arsenal if he makes a move in January (there is no ‘tie cut’ rule in the UEFA competitions since 2018/19).
A move to the Emirates Stadium would see Mudryk join Arsenal for the second time…: he had a short spell on loan with the Kyiv-based Gunners namesakes in 2019.
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Could Mudryk to Arsenal already be a done deal? His Shakhtar teammate Anatoliy Trubin joked that it was (opens in a new tab).
Meanwhile, the Gunners have been linked with two South American wonderkids in Brazilian midfielder Danilo (opens in a new tab) and Uruguayan international Facundo Torres (opens in a new tab).
Away from the transfer news, Mikel Arteta’s side returned to the top of the Premier League table as Gabriel’s goal secured a 1-0 London derby victory at Chelsea on Sunday. (opens in a new tab).
