Chelsea can get one over on their London rivals Arsenal by pipping them to the January signing of Shakhtar Donetsk star Mykhaylo Mudryk. The Gunners have been heavily linked with Mudryk since the summer transfer window with the player himself also clearly keen on the move, dropping multiple hints seemingly in the hopes a winter switch is agreed.
After several weeks of hints and updates, Arsenal made their first move for Mudryk earlier this week but saw their £55million bid including add-ons rejected, football.london understands, however, they are expected to return with a higher offer for the 21-year-old.
Shakhtar seem happy to enter negotiations with Arsenal for their star player and will likely allow him to leave if the valuation placed on him by the Ukrainian club is met. However, that doesn't just apply to Arsenal as another club could come in with the Gunners having completed much of the groundwork, pay the asking price immediately and thus likely see them acquire Mudryk.
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Newcastle had been briefly mentioned as suitors for Mudryk but it seems Arsenal are the only team holding concrete interest, unless Chelsea make a swift move for the 21-year-old, - as they have done with Enzo Fernandez, who now seems more likely to leave Benfica than stay in January.
Initially, it seemed to just be interest in Fernandez and his Argentinian team-mate Alexis Mac Allister but very quickly Chelsea stepped up their attempts to sign the Benfica midfielder and made their intentions perfectly clear, sending new technical director Christopher Vivell to open official talks.
Fernandez has a massive £105million release clause in his contract but football.london understands Chelsea are willing to pay above that fee to secure him, if they can agree favourable terms.
The Guardian report that Mudryk is a January target for Chelsea and although it would require another hefty fee to sign the Ukraine international, Todd Boehly is certainly capable of parting with those funds.
A higher offer from Arsenal will likely arrive but any hesitation could allow Chelsea to swoop in using a similar transfer plan, that looks set to work for Fernandez, by meeting Shakhtar's price tag and agreeing a deal for Mudryk directly under the noses of their London rivals.
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