After months of hints and speculation, it comes as little surprise that Arsenal appear to have made their move for Shakhtar Donetsk winger Mykhaylo Mudryk. football.london understands the Gunners lodged an opening bid worth up to £55million for the 21-year-old last week.
That offer is said to have been rejected since, though a second bid from Edu and his team has been made, improving on the original one. It remains to be seen if that will be the breakthrough bid that ensures Mudryk joins once and for all or if further discussions are required.
However, the player himself has done little to hide the fact that a move to the Emirates Stadium is one that he desires in the coming weeks. With that said, here's a look at everything he has said on a transfer to Arsenal amid the whole host of hints he has dropped.
READ MORE: Mykhaylo Mudryk to Arsenal transfer: New bid value, Contract 'agreed', Chelsea hijack
Dream move
Speaking in September in an interview with CBS Sports, Mudryk admitted that he has dreamed of making a move to the Premier League in the future. He also claimed that a move to Arsenal in particular would be tough to turn down.
He said: "I do dream (of the Premier League). I think every guy dreams about the Premier League. Arsenal is a very good team with a very good coach. I like the way they play. Yes it would be hard to say no from my side, I can't say no but the transfer is not only my decision and my word."
Real Madrid boost
Mudryk also held an interview with Vlanda Sedan, who happens to be the wife of Arsenal star Oleksandr Zinchenko. While that could be a coincidence, there was little hiding the fact that the winger continued to push over a move to Arsenal, claiming he would join them over Real Madrid.
He said on an interview on YouTube: "From a purely hypothetical perspective, if there was the option of being a bench player for Real Madrid or a starter for Arsenal, I’d probably choose Arsenal. But it’s a tough question and involves a lot of factors in my answer.
"I would first want to know from the head coach that even if I wasn’t a guaranteed starter, that I’d receive a chance. Essentially I need to hear directly from the manager what he envisages my role in his side to be."
Arsenal 'following'
It appears as though the transfer interest for Mudryk may have turned him into something of an Arsenal fan in recent months as he claims that he looks out for their scores and even watches them: "I check on them [Arsenal] in 'myscore' and know when they're playing I can check on them.
"I also watch them too. (Arsenal are) a very dynamic side, in general not just in controlling possession but also in scoring goals."
Transfer price claim
Amid a whole host of impressive performances and transfer interest, Shakhtar Donetsk appeared to place a hefty price tag on Mudryk. Grouping him with an elite bunch of wingers, the chiefs believe he could be worth as much as the likes of Jack Grealish or Antony, who fetched near the £100million mark.
With the price potentially putting suitors off, the winger spoke out on his shock at the fee, telling SportArena: "When I found out about my price, I wasn't just surprised – I was shocked. I have a long-term contract with Shakhtar, I give all my strength and energy so that Shakhtar achieves maximum results... but every football player has a dream to play in a top club and in a top championship - I am no exception.
"But I am 100 per cent sure that they are unlikely to buy a player from the championship of Ukraine for €100m. I will not hide that I was very upset. The amount of 100 million puts a barrier for my transition to the top championship, which I so dreamed of."
To add further to that, Mudryk later posted a picture to his Instagram story that showed what his value "should" be, claiming it is around the £40million mark.
Dubai trip
During the World Cup trip, Mikel Arteta took his Arsenal squad to Dubai for some warm weather training, where they prepared for their return to action. Speculation surrounding Mudryk intensified though as the winger was also spotted there during the exact same time frame.
Social media hints
Instagram has been something of a tool for Mudryk to drop transfer hints through, be it liking posts about a move to Arsenal or pictures to his story suggesting such. The latest of which was him posting clips watching the previous two games against both West Ham and Brighton.
The latter came with the caption "2 top coach", referring to his former Shakhtar boss Roberto De Zerbi and current Arsenal manager Arteta.
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