Chelsea increasingly confident of signing Mudryk as Arsenal problem emerges

Chelsea are increasingly confident of signing Mykhailo Mudryk with Arsenal reluctant to be embroiled in a bidding war.

The Gunners are keen to add to their forward line this January to help consolidate their place at the summit of the Premier League.

However, so far they have seen two bids worth up to £62million rejected by Shakhtar Donetsk for their top transfer target Mudryk, and now face competition for his signature from London rivals Chelsea.

The Blues have been scouring the market for a winger, and a move for the 22-year-old may be accelerated after injuries to both Raheem Sterling and Christian Pulisic in Thursday’s 1-0 loss to Manchester City.

While Mudryk has publicly expressed a desire to join Arsenal on a number of occasions, several reports have noted Chelsea have the resources to out-bid Mikel Arteta’s side.

Chelsea ‘increasingly confident' of beating Arsenal to Mudryk

While Arsenal remain favourites to sign Mudryk, the Evening Standard has claimed that Chelsea are hopeful of beating their Premier League rivals to the signature of the Ukraine international.

Shakhtar’s director of football, Darijo Srna, was reportedly a guest at Stamford Bridge during the Blues’ defeat to City and is said to have held “positive talks” with the club.

Meanwhile, Arsenal’s delay in agreeing on a fee with Shakhtar has presented Chelsea with an opportunity to hijack the deal.

Arsenal will not pay over the odds

The Telegraph has claimed that Arsenal will not pay “over the odds” for the Ukraine international, and are unwilling to be drawn into a bidding war with Chelsea.

The club are said to be wary of overspending on any transfer targets having in the past paid over the odds for several players, including the £72million club-record deal for Nicolas Pepe in 2019.

In recent years the Gunners have been more frugal in the market and are more willing to walk away from deals if they become too expensive.

Indeed, last year the club were looking to sign a new striker upon the acrimonious departure of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, but eventually decided to step away from all prospective deals due to elevated prices.

Topics: Football, Arsenal, Chelsea, Mykhaylo Mudryk, Mikel Arteta, Graham Potter, Transfers

Chris Byfield

Sport journalist with experience writing on football, rugby, boxing and the Olympics. I'm also a Crystal Palace fan. Please don't hold this against me.