Mikel Arteta has aimed a sly dig at Chelsea after Arsenal missed out on the signing of Mykhailo Mudryk. The 22-year-old was heavily linked with a move to the Gunners at the start of month but, once Todd Boehly heard of his rivals interest, the Blues swooped in and hijacked the deal.
Talks between the north Londoners and Shakhtar Donetsk were thought to have been progressing well, with Edu tabling an opening bid in the region of £55million in late December, football.london understands. Arsenal remained in contact with the Ukrainian side and, as recently as Friday, there was confidence that they were going to welcome Mudryk to the Emirates Stadium.
But then, on Saturday, Chelsea submitted a bid of their own which was thought to be around €70million (£62m), including €30million (£26m) incentivised add-ons. And, the rest was history — just hours later Mudryk was unveiled to Blues fan at Stamford Bridge with a Ukraine flag draped over his shoulders.
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It remains to be seen whether Arsenal will rue their decision to not sign Mudryk sooner. But, with Arteta in the market for a forward to bolster his attack, the Spaniard admitted that the club must do better to acquire their targets.
"I’m very proud to have the players that we have," Arteta told Sky Sports after his side's north London derby win on Sunday. "We always want to improve the squad, the club is the first one that is trying to do everything it can to improve the players, but I think as well we have to have some discipline.
"We have to be very consistent with the targets that we want as well as what we do in this moment. We can get those players better."
Mudryk penned a an eight-and-a-half-year contract at Chelsea, with the last year said to be optional meaning he could be at Stamford Bridge until 2031. And, it's fair to say that Potter is pleased to work with the the Ukraine international.
"You're never surprised in the transfer window," the Blues boss told reporters after the win against Crystal Palace. "Things happen when you don't expect them to happen.
"He's a player with a big future, one vs one he's very direct, he attacks the back-line. I think our supporters will really like him."
Then, when pressed on the length of his contract, Potter added: "I'm the head coach, so thankfully, I have enough to worry about, I'll leave contract lengths to the club. I'm looking forward to working with him. If I'm here for the remainder of his contract, then we'll all be happy."
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