Graham Potter admits he didn't expect Chelsea to sign Mykhaylo Mudryk after the Blues confirmed the arrival of the Shakhtar Donetsk winger on Sunday afternoon.
The 22-year-old has penned an enormous eight-and-a-half year contract at Stamford Bridge after Chelsea hijacked Arsenal 's proposed move for the Ukrainian. Arsenal made two bids of up to £62million for Mudryk as Mikel Arteta highlighted him as their priority target in the January transfer window.
But Chelsea gazumped the Gunners with a mouth-watering offer of around £62m plus £25m in add-ons that was accepted by Shakhtar Donetsk as Mudryk made the switch to west London. Reported to come with £100,000-a-week wages, Mudryk's big-money arrival is a signal of boardroom support for Potter, who guided the Blues to their first win in four matches with a 1-0 success over Crystal Palace on Sunday.
Speaking in his post-match press conference, Potter said: "You're never surprised in the transfer window because things happen sometimes like you don't expect. He (Mudryk) is a young player with a big future.
"He's exciting, one-versus-one, can threaten the goal. I think our supporters already like him. I'm the head coach and as you know, I've had enough to worry about and what is right for the club. If I'm here for the length of his contract, I'll be happy."
Potter's comments suggest he did not have much input into signing Mudryk, with technical director Christopher Vivell and new director of global talent and transfers Ben Winstanley directing transfer business. Winstanley held successful crunch talks with Shakhtar chiefs prior to the announcement of the signing.
Mudryk's move to Chelsea was confirmed midway through the first half of the game against Palace and the winger was unveiled at half-time. Speaking after completing his move, Mudryk told Chelsea's official website : "I'm so happy to sign for Chelsea. This is a huge club, in a fantastic league and it is a very attractive project for me at this stage of my career. I’m excited to meet my new team-mates and I’m looking forward to working and learning under Graham Potter and his staff."
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Boehly, Chelsea chairman, and Behdad Eghbali, co-controlling owner, added: "We are delighted to welcome Mykhailo to Chelsea. He’s a hugely exciting talent who we believe will be a terrific addition to our squad both now and in the years to come. He will add further depth to our attack and we know he’ll get a very warm welcome to London."
Chelsea's statement ended by thanking Shakhtar for "enabling Mykhailo to take up this new opportunity", before welcoming the winger to Stamford Bridge. Mudryk is the latest exciting attacker to join the club, with Raheem Sterling, Hakim Ziyech and Christian Pulisic amongst the plethora of talent at Potter's disposal, as well as new loan signing Joao Felix, who sent off on his debut in the 2-1 loss to Fulham on Thursday night.
Mudryk scored eight goals and provided 10 assists in 18 appearances for Shakhtar this season. The talented wideman also impressed in the Champions League and netted twice against Celtic earlier in the campaign.
