Mudryk's Shakhtar team-mates have made major prediction over his future as Arsenal deal edges closer

The team-mates of Shakhtar Donetsk star Mykhailo Mudryk have already made a major prediction of the future of the Ukrainian star amid talks with Arsenal, a transfer journalist has revealed.

Arsenal submitted an improved bid for Mudryk on Thursday, having seen two offers rejected by Shakhtar.

The latest offer, according to Fabrizio Romano, is a €70 million fixed fee plus €25 million add-ons, which puts them in the ballpark of Shakhtar's €100 million asking price.

The deal would make Mudryk the most expensive player in Arsenal's history, smashing the previous transfer record set by the signing of Nicolas Pepe from Lille in 2019.

The 22-year-old has dropped numerous hints that he wants to move to the Gunners, including posting a prayer emoji to his story on Instagram following reports of the Gunners' latest bid.

Now Romano says that Arsenal will hold further talks with Shakhtar today, with both clubs set to discuss the add-ons structure for a deal.

He adds that both buying club and player want to get a deal done quickly, having already agreed personal terms.

And they aren't the only ones who seemingly expect the move to be completed.

Shakhtar stars make Mudryk prediction

According to CBS Sports reporter Ben Jacobs, Mudryk's Shakhtar team-mates were already discussing the 22-year-old's future prior to the World Cup, and before Arsenal placed an official bid.

He says that some of them predicted that Mudryk would score the winner in the north London derby between Tottenham and Arsenal on Sunday, having expected the deal to move to the Emirates Stadium to be done before then.

Even if the signing was completed imminently, Mudryk would be unable to feature in that game, because teams have to register new signings with the Premier League before 12pm on Friday in order to play in that weekend's fixtures.

But he could make an appearance against Manchester United on January 22, which would be his first game at the Emirates Stadium, if he joins before then.

Still, the seemingly high confidence of Mudryk's team-mates that a deal is to be completed in January only adds further hope to Arsenal fans that he will be a Gunners player soon.