Mykhailo Mudryk: Chelsea Star Was Devastated After Arsenal Deal Failed to Materialise

Mykhailo Mudryk: Chelsea Star Was Devastated After Arsenal Deal Failed to Materialise

Martin Moses
updated at February 29, 2024 at 5:16 AM
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Leandro Trossard logo
L. Trossard
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Mykhailo Mudryk logo
M.Mudryk
Chelsea logoFUkraine logo
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Arsenal
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FC Shakhtar Donetsk
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  • Mykhailo Mudryk was reportedly in tears after his Arsenal move collapsed
  • The winger was widely expected to move to North London in January 2023
  • Chelsea, however, swooped in and offered Shakhtar Donetsk a better deal

Mykhailo Mudryk is said to have been devastated and crestfallen after his expected move to Arsenal fell through in January 2023.

The pacy Ukrainian international had repeatedly flirted with Arsenal and shown his admiration for Mikel Arteta on social media. The feeling was mutual with Arteta and Edu determined to break their then-transfer record fee to sign him.

Mykhailo Mudryk, Chelsea, Mikel Arteta, Arsenal, Shakhtar Donestk
Mykhailo Mudryk looks dejected during a Premier League game between Chelsea and West Ham United on August 20, 2023. Photo by Jacques Feeney/Offside.
Source: Getty Images

The move was, however, complicated when Chelsea entered into the race, offering Shakhtar Donetsk and Mudryk himself better deals than what their London rivals were offering.

He eventually joined Chelsea on January 15, 2023, in a deal worth £88.5m, as reported by Sky Sports. In hindsight, Arsenal seem to have dogged a bullet with Mudryk yet to live up to the hefty expectations. Despite this, the club was heartbroken at that time when they failed to see the deal through.

Mudryk was in tears

The Athletic indicates that the North Londoners had a clear path for developing the 23-year-old and were convinced of his talents.

Arsenal's Team News and Ticks adds that Mudryk was equally devastated and called Arsenal on his way to the airport to sign for Chelsea while in tears, begging them to sign him.

Arteta's side moved for Leandro Trossard from Brighton, with the Belgian settling in well in the Emirates. This season alone, Trossard has scored seven goals, which is four more than Mudryk's tally.

The Gunners are again in the title race conversation, sitting two points behind leaders Liverpool. Chelsea, meanwhile, are struggling for a second successive season and have been in the top half of the Premier League table only a few times.

Mudryk slams fan for giving him advice

Sports Brief has previously reported that Mudryk slammed a fan who gave him football advice. The fan took issue with the winger's one-directional running with the ball and wanted him to be more dynamic.

The Chelsea winger did not take the advice kindly and fired back at the fan, saying,

"Why [haven't] you [won the Ballon] d'Or yet?"
Authors
Martin Moses photo
Martin Moses
Martin Moses is a sports journalist with over five years of experience in media. He graduated from Multimedia University of Kenya (Bachelor of Journalism, 2017-2021)
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Mikel Arteta